


Neko no Yume Cat of Dreams Chapter 1

by CrazyDragon



Category: Fruits Basket, Petshop of Horrors
Genre: Gen, Supernatural - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-01-21
Updated: 2010-12-03
Packaged: 2017-10-13 12:14:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/137233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrazyDragon/pseuds/CrazyDragon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Crossover with Petshop of Horrors...a lost ‘pet’ adopts Kyo, and turns out to be quite able to give Akito screaming hissy-snit-fits.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**AN:** I've spent a little time adding descriptive bits that hint at the 'Fruits Basket' background, for the sake of any curious 'Petshop of Horrors' fans who might not know the series. The best way to get to know either series, of course, being to grab a copy of either the manga or the anime! _
> 
> _**Disclaimer:** I own rights to neither Natsuki Takaya's 'Fruits Basket' nor Matsuri Akino's 'Petshop of Horrors'._
> 
> _Enjoy!_

### Chapter 1

Kyo Sohma-the unfortunate soul to be cursed with the Cat's spirit, a part of the curse of the Chinese Zodiac that has been on his family for generations uncounted-didn't know where she came from, or who she was. He wasn't even entirely certain what she _looked_ like-she always kept to the shadows, giving him just the barest glimpse of movement to show she was there. Kyo didn't know how he even knew it was female, this-this maybe not-human thing that was stalking him so stealthily. He just...did, somehow.

When his most-hated cousin Yuki Sohma and his closest friend Tohru Honda finally dragged out of him what had him so jumpy, the Rat-cursed Yuki joked that maybe Kyo was developing his very own fan club. The already irritated cat saw that the insufferable "Prince" of their high school was smirking with delighted malice at the thought, even as Tohru's innocent face showed her concern for Kyo's distress.

Predictably, this started another fight between the two boys, ending in a normal way with Kyo slamming face-first into a wall in the school hallway, without even landing one good blow to his hated cousin. Dust puffed off the wall blocks from the force of the impact as the cat-cursed boy slid slowly to the ground, dazed; a half-panicked Tohru wringing her hands and babbling almost incoherently as she fluttered worriedly about him. It didn't matter how many fights happened between the two boys, with always the same end result of Kyo being much the worse for wear; Tohru never simply took it for granted that the cat was magically all right afterwards. This salved the sharpest edge off Kyo's angry frustration with never, _ever_ seeming to be able to beat the _oh_ -so-perfect Yuki.

She wouldn't show herself at all to anyone else, Kyo's stalking shadow; the others all thought he was just jumping at nothing, imagining things. -Except for the psychic goth-girl, one of Tohru's two closest friends. Saki Hanajima actually looked surprised, for a brief instant, the first time Kyo's shadow flickered across her psychic awareness. A thoughtful look was followed by a quietly raised eyebrow; then a gentle touch to the blond Yankee's arm, distracting Arisa Uo from teasing Kyo about his too-obvious jumpiness. Hana's intense study of the black shadows that she'd sensed held- _something-_ brought a faint hint of worry to the others, silencing their not-so-gentle teasing.

Especially after Hanajima then directly gave Kyo one of her rare, gentle smiles, dark eyes all too full of strange knowledge. That look raised the neck hairs of all who saw it.

Kyo bristled and all but hissed at her, eyes widening as his body tensed in a way that quite clearly reminded everyone of a bush-haired, angry cat. Then he grit his teeth and forced himself into a semblance of calm before spinning on his heel and stalking off, hands shoved roughly into the trouser pockets of his school uniform-not speaking a word. Hana, Arisa, Tohru, and Yuki all sweat-dropped as they stared after him, wondering at this unusual silence.

Where was all his normal yelling and screaming? Where was that untamable, quick-flaming temper that got him in so much trouble all the time? A quiet Kyo just was not _natural;_ it was like seeing the sun at midnight!

Yuki had been the first to shake off the bemusement and get everyone moving again, towards home or work or whatever other after-school destinations they might have planned. They could just ask Kyo about it the next day, after all. Yuki and Tohru's best friends sweat-dropped, then sighed in resignation as Tohru immediately proceeded to rattle on about all of the things that could possibly be wrong with Kyo-kun, and how she hoped it wasn't her fault-it would be just terrible if she were to blame, if she'd done something to offend Kyo-kun; and how ever would she make it up to him if she'd gotten him ill!-

The rat-cursed boy did his best to reassure Tohru that Kyo was not likely sick; probably he was only feeling under the weather-there was a storm heading their way on the morrow, after all. This might have worked, if Tohru hadn't then realized that Kyo didn't have an umbrella with him; what if the rain was coming in early, and he got soaked before he got home? And so she was off again, worrying that Yuki's _so_ -irritating feline of a cousin was going to catch his death of a cold; thankfully not mentioning in front of the other two girls how it was the Cat's second curse that made him especially sensitive to rainy weather, sapping his strength until he was sometimes barely able to raise his head, let alone stand. Not that they'd likely even notice the content of her words, at the unbelievably fast pace the girl was speaking; let alone understand what she was talking about. They had no knowledge of the curse of the Chinese Zodiac that lay upon twelve-and-one members of the Sohma clan, plus their Clan Head.

Well. That was Tohru for you. She even worried about _Akito,_ the Sohma Clan Head and 'God' of the Zodiac-cursed, for heaven's sake! Akito was malice incarnate, as far as Yuki was concerned. He had the scars to prove it...both physical, and not.

Yuki spared a brief, rather snide wish that the idiot cat _would_ end up with at least a mild cold, both for his carelessness and for his inconsiderate worrying of Tohru. The two boys had been practicing the hereditary enmity of the Cat and the Rat of the Zodiac curse for as long as they'd known of each other's existence; but even so, the thought was more form force of habit, than any real sense of spite. Living with Tohru for the past year had mellowed them both towards each other, at least somewhat.

A 'miraculously' not-sick Kyo got up extra early the next day, at least partially in hopes of avoiding a grilling from his too-nosy house-mates. The Dog-cursed Shigure Sohma was too much the perverted idiot of a romance writer for any sane teenaged boy to even consider asking advice from him. Yuki would be no help at all, and he didn't want to worry Tohru. So Kyo left for school before Tohru had even begun making breakfast, the idea lurking in his mind to confront this shadow-girl of his for once and all. Maybe, if he was completely alone, she'd actually come out and let him at least see her clearly.

He had no such luck, that first day; or for the rest of that too-long week. His shadow-girl seemed to know very well what he was up to, and was having none of it. His house-mates were giving him strange looks and insistently trying to pin him down to find out what was wrong-when they could get themselves into the same room he was in, anyway. But Kyo himself was hard as a shadow to corner, when he truly put his mind to it.

The irony wasn't lost on him, though he completely failed to appreciate it.

Saturday, determinedly staying out in the forest for the entire afternoon after the half-day of school, Kyo didn't even catch a glimpse of movement anywhere around him that wasn't easily seen as normal wildlife. His temper had risen well beyond the boiling point by then; he was snapping at every little thing anyone did around him, and his fights with Yuki had become so frequent they barely said a word to each other before the fists and feet and then Kyo started flying. Poor Shigure was nearly beside himself with bemoaning the damage to his 'poor, defenseless house!'

Then, on Sunday-things changed. Kyo forewent his one day of the week for sleeping in and rose well before the sun. He slipped on his favorite black t-shirt and beige cargo pants, pulled on a dark blue hoodie against the early morning chill, and stalked determinedly out the front door and into the forest surrounding the house. Fierce crimson eyes bored into the nearly invisible path in front of his feet as his tennis shoes crunched with purpose through dead leaves and branches. His wild, yet Sohma-handsome features were grim; he kept his fisted hands in his pockets, hunching slightly as he tried to keep a rein on his so-volatile temper. A slight breeze ruffled his short orange hair, sending chill fingers down his neck whenever it could.

He was sick and tired of this game. It _was_ going to end, that very day!

Kyo's feet brought him to the shore of the small lake that had witnessed the worst, yet conversely best day of his life. He paused in _that spot,_ memory of Tohru clinging to his monstrously misshapen arm while he tried almost frantically to shake her off stabbing at his heart. She'd been very lucky he hadn't seriously hurt her, only given her some bruises where she'd hit the ground as he swung his horrendously strong and deformed arm about. He remembered how his claws had raked Yuki's shoulder when the rat also refused to just let him go, let him draw away from them possibly forever; instead grabbing Kyo's hideously transformed legs and holding on for dear life while Tohru so desperately tried to reach the cat's tortured mind.

She had accepted him, in spite of that form. _Both_ of them had accepted him, had come after him...even the damned rat. They had not rejected him; nor pretended it did not bother them, when any sane human was terrified of the Cat-cursed's monstrous 'true form'-including the one cursed to wear it. None of them had spoken of it, since; or even changed their behaviors each towards the others all that much...but it had caused a profound change in Kyo, nonetheless.

He and the damned rat had actually started behaving like something other than deadly enemies. Neither was sure just what exactly they _were,_ now; but they couldn't truly call themselves enemies any more, in spite of their occasional flare-ups of temper. Until Kyo's mysterious shadow-girl showed up, that is, and started fraying the cat's temper back to the sad state it was in before Tohru came into his life... Kyo's shadow was undoing all of the good that Tohru had done him, by spooking him so much he reverted to his old self!

Kyo's lips pulled back as a snarl grew on his face, anger flaming hotter than ever in those crimson eyes. Damnit, was he _so_ pitiful that something this- _simple,_ could undo all the improvements he'd made? He cursed loudly as he knelt by the largest rock on the shore, his hand absently reaching to rest on it.

A shudder wracked his wiry body as his fingers found the deep gouges his claws had left, _that day._ He clearly remembered that _shape_ that his body took on during the rain, after his Master-his karate teacher, grandson of the previous cat-cursed; and the closest thing he'd ever had to a real father, since his own wanted nothing more than for him to be locked away from all human contact forever-or better yet, killed... When Master took away his beads, his body had transformed as the hated rain drenched him, the pain of his bones and muscles shifting and altering dragging a cry from him. He had _changed_ into that hideous, monstrous 'true form' that the cat-cursed was forced to endure, in addition to the Zodiac curse of an animal's body when hugged by a girl.

Kyo's right hand crept on its own from that rock to protectively cover the black and white beads; reassuring himself that the bracelet was still safely about his left wrist, sealing away that awful form. His eyes glanced quickly, habitually upwards, reaffirming that it was not raining and wasn't about to start any time soon. Not that he could possibly miss noticing the usual bone-deep lethargy that came with the rain, sapping his strength; stealing away his vitality...seeming to drain his very life away...

He was so wrapped up in not-so-pleasant reminiscence that he nearly missed spotting the girl who stepped out of the trees, across the small lake from him.

The shadows appeared reluctant to give her up, seeming almost to drift out from under the trees with her. They resolved into the longest, fullest head of unbound, coal-black hair Kyo had ever seen in his _life_ -even in manga characters! It reached all the way to the _ground,_ floating freely about and behind her, almost like a heavy cloak. It was hard to tell through the thick, wavy locks, but it looked like she was wearing a black miniskirt and skin-tight, long-sleeved turtleneck shirt, with thigh-high black boots. He couldn't tell what any of it was made from-he could only make out that there was no reflection from the stiff-seeming material, such as leather or silk would have. Possibly the whole outfit was made of suede; it seemed stiff enough from a distance. Her skin was pale as moonlight in the midst of all that unforgiving black, nearly pearl-white. There were no glints as from jewelry, or buckles, or any kind of ornamentation.

He couldn't make out the exact color of her dark eyes from such a distance, but they were large, slanted, and seemed to bore into his very soul even from more than two hundred feet away. She stood absolutely still, the only movement about her from the faint breeze sifting through her long locks with delicate, invisible fingers. That same quiet caress of air wafted a faint, sweetish, vaguely distracting scent over the lake to Kyo, who was too preoccupied to consciously notice it.

Kyo stared, slack-jawed and stunned. Something about her was- _calling_ to him, in a way he couldn't understand. It wasn't that she was absolutely _the_ single most stunningly beautiful woman he'd ever even imagined; no, this calling felt like it was somehow related to his curse.

It was like-she was a _cat;_ simply having chosen to wear human form.

That realization snapped him out of his dazed staring, jump-starting his mind and firing up his notorious temper. Not one to mince words, he took a deep breath to steady himself and yelled to her, his voice conveying both anger and nervousness, "Who the hell are you? Why have you been following me!"

She stared curiously back at him in silence for several moments, as Kyo felt his temper start to churn his thoughts into incoherence. He fisted his hands at his sides, gritting his teeth and trying hard as he could to bite back his anger. He wanted- _needed_ -answers, from this strange girl! This mysterious stalking was driving him _insane!_

Suddenly her eyes broke from his, widening and staring behind him with alarm. She spun and darted off into the trees before Kyo's mind had even registered that she was moving, with a distinctly feline grace to her movements that sent an icy chill up his spine even as he gaped in awed appreciation; his body jerking in an aborted move to follow after her, one hand raised and reaching. She was on the other side of the lake; there was no way he'd ever catch her.

Shaking his head to clear his slightly muddled thoughts, Kyo scowled and spun to look behind himself. A faint rustling approaching through the underbrush drew his eyes, the dense foliage eventually spitting out his still much-loathed cousin, Yuki. Kyo glared at the rat-cursed boy as Yuki brushed stray bits of leaf and twig off himself, his much too pretty, slightly feminine face set in a mild grimace of distaste for the new snags on his sleeves. All of Kyo's built-up frustration peaked, making it all but impossible for him to use a civil tone with the other boy. It was only later that he would regret his sharp words, wistfully recalling that the two of them had learned better how to relate to each other, and to even grudgingly respect one another.

"What the hell are _you_ doing here, you damned rat?"

Yuki let out a long-suffering sigh, eyes rolling heaven-wards as he gathered his scant patience for his too-annoying relation. A vague sense of disappointment washed over him, fading quickly as old habits came to the fore. Hands loose at his sides and back straight, Yuki stared flat-eyed at Kyo and told him, "Miss Honda is worried about you; you were gone when we got up, and she wasn't certain you'd been back at all last night. I promised her I'd bring you back." Violet-gray eyes stared coldly into burning crimson, conveying a world of disdain for the inconsiderate boy who would make their so-dear friend worry needlessly. Concentrating on Kyo's 'offense' kept the rat from consciously noticing the concern that had been growing in his own heart, as the cat seemed to be getting closer and closer to a nervous breakdown as the days went by and his delusion of a stalker consumed him.

Except-Hanajima had believed in Kyo's stalker. Yuki ruthlessly shoved that quiet thought to the back of his mind, unwilling to deal with it in the face of Kyo's irrational anger.

Mention of Tohru helped Kyo keep himself from immediately attacking the hated rat-cursed boy, sending a vague feeling of guilt through his heart even as every furious instinct of the spirit he was cursed with argued that he should attack the youth in front of him. He knew Tohru hated it when he and Yuki fought, and so had been consciously trying to build up a tolerance to his rival's presence-even as Yuki had been doing towards him. Yuki's coming after him on... _that day_...had helped a very great deal.

They both still had a long way to go before tolerating each other could be called anything but monumentally difficult, though. And that damned stalking girl _was not_ helping! Kyo swallowed a growl of frustration.

"Well, I was back; I went to bed early, and got up early to go for a walk." Kyo bristled as he snapped; he couldn't help himself, something about Yuki just-always brought out the worst in him, especially when his temper was already high. He was nearly spitting when he went on, "You just scared off that annoying shadow, you damned rat! I might have gotten some answers, if you'd taken another lousy five minutes!"

One almost delicate grey eyebrow rose as Yuki stared back at him, unimpressed. Kyo's recent return to his old, overly touchy self had worn on the rat-cursed boy's nerves more than ever before. His teeth were gritted and his violet eyes narrowed with annoyance when he spoke with his own rising temper in a particularly clipped and precise manner, "Miss Honda should have breakfast ready by now. Are you coming, or am I bringing you?"

Needless to say, there ensued another of their infamous rat-cat fights, this time ending with Yuki dragging an insensate Kyo by the collar all the way back to Shigure's house. The only thing keeping him from dragging the idiot cat through as many brambles and mud-holes and over the roughest ground he could find, was the remembrance that it was _Miss Honda_ who would have to repair his fool cousin's clothing, and would fuss over the stupid cat's injuries.

He wasn't about to _carry_ the idiot cat, though!

Kyo didn't really understand why, but he found himself sneaking plates of Tohru's cooking out into the forest every evening after he first actually saw the girl, when he was sure no one was watching him. He'd set the meal out on a tray, with napkins and chopsticks and a cup of tea and all; where he was somehow sure the shadow-girl would find it. Tohru was pleased to think that he was eating better; Kyo flushed guiltily and let her think he was eating it all up on the roof, his habitual place of solitude. His anti-social reputation came in handy, sometimes.

Even when he couldn't see the shadow-girl, he could feel eyes on him. Every morning, when he snuck out for his before-breakfast solitary jog, he'd find the tray and sparkling-clean plates right where he'd left them. He had the oddest sensation that he was feeding a stray animal...except-animals did not use chopsticks; or wash dishes.

It wasn't until one drizzly Sunday a whole month later that Kyo was able to catch another look at the strange girl. It was once again at that same small lake, in the evening hours just before sunset. The weather had been miserable for three days straight, heavy storms ripping through the district one after the other with only a few hours of mere sprinkles scattered in between the more pummeling watery assaults. Thanks to his curse, Kyo was barely able to walk without leaning on something, and had great difficulty even stringing two coherent thoughts together.

Even Tohru had given up on getting more than a quiet monosyllable in reply to anything said to him. Kyo found himself concentrating on one simple thing at a time, the cursed exhaustion eating at his very bones.

He still kept faithfully leaving the food out every day, in spite of his condition; making sure to use a covered tray, and leaving it under cover of heavier underbrush. And he was determined to go sit by the lake again for a few hours, as he now did every Sunday morning; hoping to see her again. He still didn't have his answers, after all; though he was less and less hopeful of ever learning anything about the strange black-haired girl, as time wore on and on.

At least he had finally managed to get a handle on his temper, as the situation continued on unchanged for so long. A body could only tolerate so much stress from a state of constant readiness before complacency tried to creep back in.

Trudging lead-limbed through the forest, he'd barely noticed the concerned shadow-girl's appearance, hovering closer and closer to him. This was the first truly bad string of storms since she'd begun following him, and apparently she had no clue what was wrong with him. When he got to the lake, Kyo plopped himself down on a convenient boulder; nearly missing his seat altogether as lightning surged, his curse echoing misery sharply through his veins along with the thunder that followed. He sat there, slumped over, elbows on knees; nearly falling over as his curse-inspired tiredness sapped his energy and set his body to a painful, bone-deep throbbing.

He stared at the gently lapping wavelets of the little lake in a foggy daze, his thoughts scattered by the water once more pouring down from the sky. He didn't have the energy to be thankful it was only a light rainstorm at the moment, and not another full thunderstorm with accompanying blasts of sky-crossing lightning and deafening thunder; and shrieking winds blowing the rain sideways.

This time the girl appeared right behind him, stepping hesitantly to within a foot of his seated form. Her body language screamed nervous curiosity; and concern. Even Yuki hadn't been able to help but feel sorry for the cursed cat as the storms raged on, Kyo looked so pitiful. The black-haired girl cocked her head as she stared silently at his back; wide, slanted eyes that were black as her impossibly long mane of hair going thoughtful. She tilted her head the other way before tentatively stepping to his side, stooping to peer carefully into his face, long, sodden locks still seeming to somewhat flow about her, pooling on the ground amidst the puddles. Light reflected off her eyes in green-gold flashes, like a true cat's, as that same subtle, sweetish scent of some unnamed incense enveloped them both.

When he made no move, and didn't even acknowledge her presence, she blinked and let out a tiny little snort of surprise. She sidled a bit closer, until her face was a mere ten inches from Kyo's.

After nearly five minutes of her intense, unblinking scrutiny, Kyo's curse-befuddled mind finally registered her patient attendance. He startled and winced away from her, shaking his head sharply in an effort to clear his muddled thoughts before staring right into her large, slanted black eyes.

She startled in turn at his sudden movement, but didn't back away. Crimson eyes were caught by deep, fathomless obsidian, sucked into the slit pupil that was invisibly blacker within them.

That evening, Kyo returned to Shigure's house with a veritable parade of sodden, but content felines about him; and an elegant, long-haired black cat snuggled comfortably in his arms, miraculously barely dampened by the still-pouring rain, oddly black eyes half-lidded with utter satisfaction. Kyo bore a slightly dazed expression when Shigure met him just inside the door, answering his dog-cursed cousin's questions only vaguely, and with a worrying lack of his normal fierce temper. When Shigure asked about Kyo's 'guest,' the dog had the oddest sensation that he and Kyo were talking about two entirely different creatures.

"She's decided she's staying with me. Her name's Yume." Kyo was staring into the black cat's eyes as she had twisted her head about to gaze at him with contentment. His voice was unaccustomedly soft-and eerily _calm_.

Shigure raised an eyebrow as he tried to ignore the way his neck-hairs were trying to stand on end, and gave Kyo a slightly worried Look before replying. "All right, Kyo-kun...but just remember, she's _your_ responsibility. Our poor, dear Tohru-chan has enough to do, without feeding this stray of yours as well!" Shigure was thinking of litter boxes and cat food, as well as cat hairs on the furniture. Kyo was usually quite embarrassed whenever his curse affected felines to respond to his moods, and removed both himself and them out of sight of everyone; usually into the woods, sometimes up to the roof. This was the first time that Shigure had ever heard of the boy wanting to actually keep one of the creatures with him as a pet; he wasn't certain just what to make of the development.

The belated idea of _feline claws_ and _upholstery_ didn't occur to him until a good half hour later, when it was really too late to do much about it. Compared the fallout from Kyo's and Yuki's fighting it could only be negligible damage, anyway.

Crimson eyes _almost_ focused on Shigure's as Kyo gave him a mildly confused look before the boy sidled carefully by, staring at Shigure like he was an alien or something. The dog-cursed man stared back in consternation, dark eyes blinking in mild perplexity at the complete lack of a violent response. Ah, well; he supposed he'd figure out what had Kyo so weirded out later, he always did. Perhaps his young cousin was ill...?

The long-haired black cat was forever with Kyo after that, going everywhere he went. It even managed to repeatedly get into his classes at school, in spite of the school faculty's determined attempts to chase it away. After the third day of this game of hide and chase, Kyo blew his temper and informed his teacher, "She's not going to do anything to disrupt the class, so just let her sit there quietly, already! Damn!"

Of course he was reprimanded for his language, as well as his rudeness to his teacher. Mayu-sensei forgave him quickly, though, knowing the hot-tempered boy as well as she did. It helped that the cat-Yume-made a point of buttering her up, spending most of Kyo's class time either curled up in Mayu-sensei's chair, or on her desk; or right in the teacher's lap, every time she sat down. The steady, soothing purr she gave off did a great deal to keep Kyo out of trouble. This tactic worked equally well on the rest of his teachers, though Yume didn't hop into any teacher's lap but for Mayu-sensei's.

Kyo didn't truly realize for a couple of days that _he_ was the only one who saw Yume as a human. The first time she jumped into Mayu-sensei's lap was his first obvious clue. The black-clad girl's slow, decidedly feline look of satisfaction aimed right at him while Mayu-sensei absently began to pet her on the head, told him clearly that _something_ was definitely _not right_ with his world!

After a couple more weeks, Kyo had gotten used to the oddity of seeing the girl treated by everyone as if she were a real cat. He stopped wondering about it, and just accepted things as they were. A boy who turns into a cat when hugged by a girl had no cause to complain about a cat who looked like a human girl, but only to his eyes. Her presence somehow brought him comfort; he wasn't about to worry about it, and maybe chase her away. It didn't matter, really...and he needed the supporting friendship she was giving him too desperately to risk losing it through his own foolishness.

After all, he graduated High School in less than seven months. After that, he wouldn't be seeing _anyone,_ ever again--except, quite possibly, the mysterious Yume.

-.-.-.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**AN:** There are at least a couple-three more chapters to this. It's not going to be a 100,000+ word full-sized monster this time, though--yay! I might actually hit my target length of under 10,000 words. --Unless Count D wanders in, and bribes me with one of the yummy sugary-sweet confections he's so fond of...I work for chocolate, after all. Just ask my co-workers ::wanders off, drooling at the mental image of about twelve tons of various kinds of chocolates::_


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**Disclaimer:** I own neither Natsuki Takaya's 'Fruits Basket' nor Matsuri Akino's 'Petshop of Horrors'._
> 
> _Gee...only one review...::sigh:: C'mon, I won't melt if somebody tells me they don't like a specific something. I might blubber in private for a few minutes, but I'll get over it. ,'_
> 
> _Enjoy!_
> 
> _**2-24-07 EDIT--** EEP! Caught one typo, then added a word here-then two more there; then a whole section jumped out and bothered _me. Next thing I knew, I'd added 500 words! Sheesh. Nothing too major; mainly clarification.__

### Chapter 2

Yuki was the first person to notice that Kyo was speaking to, and just generally treating his new 'pet' as if she were human. The first time Yuki saw an indication of this, he had been walking down the upstairs hall of Shigure's house and saw his orange-haired cousin in his bedroom, standing there, talking and waving his arms for all the world as if he were discussing something with someone in fierce whispers-but the only other living being in his bedroom had been Yume, curled up on the middle of his futon and staring up at him with calm, attentive black eyes.

Yuki had smirked and written it off as his hot-tempered cousin finally snapping, talking to himself like a fool; or perhaps practicing arguing-as if he needed help being a contrary idiot! The Zodiac-cursed Sohmas had a special affinity with the animals whose curse they bore, true; but that didn't bestow human intelligence on the creatures. The rat-cursed boy snorted at the thought of holding any sort of meaningful conversation with the rats he was 'gifted' with understanding. None of the animals of the Zodiac curse actually _spoke,_ in anything like human words; the cursed Sohmas were simply given to understand the simple emotions and intentions of their curse animals, as well as being able to project their own meaning in the same manner when speaking to the creatures.

The next evening, Yuki's attention had been captured by the way the black feline seemed to be _responding_ to Kyo's words. She would nod her head, or cock it questioningly...and Kyo would act for all the world as if he were speaking to a human being. Who was responding intelligently. It was rather like hearing half of a telephone conversation-of an argument on philosophy. An animated, disturbingly _interesting_ argument on philosophy, with quite well-thought-out points of view.

The now distressed rat's eyebrows rose as he sidled quietly away, feeling his hackles standing at attention with his disquiet at this oddity. He gave his cousin odd looks for a couple of days afterwards, as he tried to deal with the discovery that the 'stupid' cat was quite capable of intelligently arguing the finer points of the human condition.

-With a _cat._

A cat that had been paying studious attention, looking for all the world as if it had been answering him back; arguing, and intelligently-if Yuki only had the ears to hear its manner of speech.

Further now-careful observation proved to Yuki that whatever else that black cat might be, it _was_ intelligent as any human-and understood Japanese quite well, thank you very much. Out of a morbid kind of curiosity, he began speaking to it as if it were human, himself-so long as he thought there was no one there to catch him at it. He couldn't get vocal answers out of it, other than normal feline sounds of inquiry, encouragement, agreement or denial; but the creature was quite clear in its body language, if you bothered to pay attention.

It also seemed to take obvious pains to be clear in answering him, as if using 'baby talk' with the poor, disabled human. He swore he saw amusement in its too-black eyes.

Kyo had given him a rather sharp look the first time he walked into the kitchen and caught Yuki speaking to Yume as if she were a human girl. Surprisingly, that look held no anger-just an intense kind of questioning, with thoughts moving quickly behind those red eyes. When the expected explosion didn't happen, Yuki frowned at him in puzzlement. The rat would have expected at least some form of snide ridicule from the cat, if not his usual anger.

But Kyo merely looked away, discomfited. Then he left; without a word, or even a glare. Yume had cocked her head curiously after Kyo, given one long, slow blink, then settled herself more comfortably on the chair she had chosen for napping, choosing to ignore Yuki's presence. He'd been too confused by Kyo's lack of reaction to pursue her attention, instead ending up tending to his garden for the rest of the afternoon in an effort to soothe his flustered nerves.

It had admittedly taken Yuki a couple of days at first to deal with the primal sense of pure fear that rose up and tried to choke off his breath, whenever Kyo's new 'pet' stared at him with what his curse absolutely insisted were _hungry_ black eyes. The Rat's spirit within him was absolutely terrified by that shadow-spawned creature, and refused to be reassured by Yuki's continuing victories in the once more infrequent fights with a much more self-possessed Kyo. The Cat-cursed boy's now greatly calmed temper didn't help a bit; the Rat's spirit became _quite_ paranoid at this unusual behavior.

After all, if the cat could control his ferocious temper, he'd quit handicapping himself whenever he fought Yuki. And for all Kyo had never won once for as long as they'd been fighting, Yuki was very well aware that his annoying cousin was actually his better at martial arts, by a fair bit. When he wasn't too angry to think straight, anyway. Which was why Yuki had always taken great pains to set Kyo's fiery temper alight at every opportunity, ensuring the fool cat would get angry at the mere sight of his most hated foe. Kyo's gullibility in this matter fueled Yuki's arrogant disdain for his cousin, even as his jealousy over the cat's seemingly easy way with other people made it easy to constantly insult him in ways both subtle, and not.

Yuki was disturbed to realize, once he started treating the black cat as he would a human, that he was also beginning to understand _Kyo_ more than a bit better-because he had started unconsciously noticing the Cat-cursed boy's body language, instead of concentrating on just his words. For that matter, he simply found himself actually _looking_ at Kyo for a change, at his expressions and silent mannerisms; instead of simply ignoring the fiery-tempered boy as much as possible and only responding to his usually un-thought words, as had been the rat's habit in the past.

Yuki had never paid that much attention to Kyo, before...he really didn't know all that much about the cousin he supposedly hated so much. For instance, he'd never noticed that Kyo's face could show so much sad longing, when the cat looked at friends or family groups out enjoying themselves together; or that he could have such a tender, caring expression as when he looked at Tohru-always and only when her back was turned to him. Or that Kyo could take on such a look of tight-jawed anxiousness; suppressed fear, even, whenever Akito's name was mentioned. The rat had always thought the idiot cat was rather unaffected by their Clan Head's threatening presence; probably because he so very rarely was permitted even a glimpse of Akito, and was forbidden to come to the Main House except for the annual New Year's celebration, for his ceremonial exclusion.

Kyo certainly always egged the rest of them on to defy the Clan Head whenever he saw them showing the least signs of cowering before their 'god'. Yuki had come to believe the cat felt none of the overpowering fear and compulsion to obey their 'god' that the rest of them accepted as part of their sorry lot in this cursed life.

The rat was dumbfounded to see the cat look so astonishingly worried when Hatori unexpectedly showed up to take Yuki to the Main House for a mandatory 'visit' with Akito. That was definitely worry in those crimson eyes, that the cat was quite obviously-to someone who was bothering to pay any attention at all-trying to cover up with professed anger and disinterest. The way those crimson eyes couldn't seem to keep from flicking glances towards him and Hatori as the dragon escorted the rat out of Shigure's house, as well as the shadow with the hint of orange about the head that appeared to stare out of that upstairs window after them as Hatori drove them off- _bothered_ Yuki.

It bothered him even more, when that shadow was still there when he returned, several hours later. Tohru had apparently been persuaded to go to bed instead of waiting up for him; but the cat kept up his vigil until the rat was back in the house. Kyo quite obviously hadn't wanted him to know that the cat had waited up. Which led Yuki to wonder just how many times Kyo had done the like, that he had never known about.

He held perfectly a couple hours later when nearly soundless footsteps padded down the hall and stopped right by his door. He'd easily heard the soft scrape of wood when it slid open a fraction several moments later, and saw through slitted eyes when a dark shadow quietly peered in at him. There was no way it was Tohru; much as he cared for her, Yuki knew very well how clumsy the girl could be...besides, she wasn't that tall. The shadowy figure sighed almost soundlessly, but still with audible relief that Yuki appeared to be sleeping peacefully, before quietly sliding the door shut once more and padding a too-short ways back down the hallway. Yuki just barely heard another door open, then close.

The stairs never creaked; there was no way he could convince himself it had really been Shigure. His mind didn't want to deal with the knowledge of who it had to be, checking up on him; but he forced himself to wrap his thoughts about the idea.

Noticing the way Kyo carefully avoided their usual fighting the next day, until he'd had a chance to see for certain through not-so-subtle observation that the rat wasn't at all moving as if he were injured, threw Yuki into so much confusion he nearly failed a test at school as he tried to convince himself he was imagining things. But every time he looked, that day, Kyo's eyes were on him-the concern stunningly clear for just a split second before the cat covered the emotion with a glare, or simply looked quickly away.

Yuki couldn't for the life of him figure out why _Kyo_ would be concerned, when Akito called _him_ to the Main House...it's not like the cat cared what happened to the rat!

...Right?

Kyo _hated_ Yuki. The foolish cat didn't even know what Akito _did_ to the rat!

...did he...?

 _Did_...Kyo know? Did he...actually...

... _care_...?

Yuki spent several days in a state of constant indigestion, above and beyond the stress of that luckily 'brief' meeting with a sicklier than normal Akito, as his mind and heart tried to deal with the profoundly disturbing thought of the cat's concern. He had _seen_ the brief expression of relief on Kyo's face at breakfast the next morning, when the cat first laid eyes directly on the rat in the light of day...and confirmed that Yuki seemed uninjured, physically at any rate. The cat had quite obviously been _worrying,_ in his own way; just as Tohru had been. Even the irrepressible Shigure had still been up when Yuki returned, late as it had been; immediately poking his head out of his study as Yuki came in the front door. The dog's dark eyes had been inscrutable until with a crude remark, he pulled his usual perverted idiot persona about himself like a cloak. If he hadn't been thinking so much about Kyo's unexpected and inexplicable concern, Yuki might have never noticed Shigure's not-so-obvious worry.

It had been rather gratifying, the relief at his safe return he'd seen in each of those three sets of eyes; even as he'd been embarrassed to have caused so much concern in the household. He'd wondered that morning just how long his cousins had planned on waiting up for him, even as he and Kyo indulged in a brief verbal spat to let off pent up frustrations. It didn't have anything like the level of animosity they'd once had for each other; he'd realized with a start of surprise that he rather enjoyed this pointed banter with his 'enemy'. He didn't have to pull his verbal 'punches'; Kyo could take his insults, and fling back some of his own. Yuki didn't have to be perpetually careful of what he said to Kyo; didn't have to think of too-polite inanities to cloak what he truly wanted to say. He could just-let it all out; all of his frustrations and anger.

He wondered if the habitually standoffish Kyo felt the same way. Not that Kyo ever appeared to spend any effort at restraining his sometimes acidic, un-thought comments with anyone, other than Tohru; but still. The cat was known to show regret for his hasty words, at times.

For a week afterwards, Yuki lay sleepless in his bed for several hours each night before finally falling into an emotionally exhausted sleep; unable to get the memory of Kyo's brief, unguarded moment of concern-or the follow-up relief the next morning, at the rat's safe return-out of his mind's eye.

The suspicion had come to him that the cat had purposefully insulted him that first morning, to help him blow off the stress from seeing their 'god'. The thought scared Yuki, even as it sent quite the unwelcome warmth through him. Both that Kyo might do something like that, for anyone-and that Kyo was capable of thinking of doing it in the first place. The insult 'stupid cat' was seeming farther and farther from the truth, lately. Yuki realized, the more he paid attention, that he understood even less about his Cat-cursed cousin than he'd thought.

If Kyo...really had always known what Akito was doing to the rat; even if he hadn't done anything about it, any more than any of the rest of the family had ever done anything-as if there was anything the outcast, despised cat possibly _could_ have done...

If Kyo didn't truly hate Yuki-

It just-upset Yuki's entire world-view. It was like finding out the sun really orbited the Earth, instead of the other way around; as if water would suddenly start falling upwards, and snow come only in the middle of summer. It wasn't- _right!_

Though it wasn't as disturbing to Yuki as finding a strange and beautiful young woman with long, long black hair and even blacker eyes sitting calmly on his bed one evening, legs curled demurely under her as she waited patiently for him, leaning comfortably propped by one slender arm.

Yuki stopped dead in his doorway, frozen with eyes wide and jaw dropped, hand still on his door; a faint, sweetish scent of incense tickling at the edge of his attention as his wits deserted him in a sudden rush of disorientation. The stranger-girl stared unblinking back at him with an impassive, porcelain-skinned face, keeping still as a statue. Yuki forgot to breathe for a few moments until his lungs started to burn with the lack of air, his vision blurring.

There was something so decidedly _feline_ about her that the Rat's spirit within him quailed, nearly sending him scurrying from his own bedroom. Yuki grit his teeth and stiffened his spine, violet eyes hardening; determined that he wouldn't be scared out of his own room by some strange girl who shouldn't even be in the house in the first place! Taking a deep and steadying breath, he slid his door closed behind him and stepped closer to face her; trying to ignore the strange sense of familiarity he found while looking into her obsidian eyes.

"Who are you, and _what_ are you doing in my room?"

She cocked her head curiously to one side, shifting her legs a bit to settle herself more comfortably on his bed as her long locks shifted about her with seeming life of their own. One slow, languorous blink of those impossibly black eyes sent a thrill of fear chittering through his curse. Yuki clamped his lips tightly as he fought the urge to shriek in a strange mix of fear and frustration, holding himself steady with a fierce exercise of pure willpower as he stared back at her.

" _Why_ are humans so _slow_...and so blind?"

Her voice was soft and low, with a purr to it that Yuki had somehow been halfway expecting. His eyes flicked towards Kyo's room for a second as his agile mind started connecting seemingly unrelated bits of information and feelings. It made no _sense-_ but then again, what could a boy say, who was himself cursed to change into a rat? He was hardly one who could deny the existence of magic of any sort. The Rat's spirit seemed in terrified agreement with his sudden understanding.

Working at keeping his breathing steady, Yuki thought his voice stayed remarkably calm when he said, softly, "Yume."

The sound she made as she cocked her head the other way was identical to the soft, questioning _prrrrt?_ Kyo's new long-haired black cat would make when her name was called. She gave him a long, slow blink as Yuki realized this really _was_ a human form that Kyo's cat could apparently take on at will. It certainly explained why Kyo had been treating her as human since he brought her home!

A boy who turns into a rat with a simple hug from any girl had no business getting hysterical over a cat who could take on human shape. Yuki repeated that thought to himself three times before the humor in the situation got the better of the Rat spirit's fear. After all, Yume had been living with them for a month, and had yet to show signs of wanting to have Rat for dinner; she wasn't likely to have changed her mind now, especially as well as Kyo kept her fed.

He hoped...!

A shiver rippled up his spine and down his arms before Yuki shook off the bemusement trying to wrap about his mind. He wanted to know why Yume had chosen to show him this form, at this time. He ignored the silent question in the back of his mind-was this really a cat who turned into a girl; or was it a girl who turned into a cat? It didn't really matter, all things considered; Yume was whatever she wished to be, by her actions. He just hoped he could get some answers out of her. He took a deep, steadying breath and determinedly gathered his scattered wits.

"What do you want from me?"

Yuki's instincts all shrieked when Yume almost poured herself off his bed and onto her feet. He didn't know of any human body that could move with such mesmerizing, fluid grace! Her hair all but floated after her like a cloak as she stepped close, putting her now quizzical face mere inches from Yuki's. It took a deal of effort for him to not step back from her unnerving, unblinking gaze.

"Why does _he_ love you?"

Yuki's mind blanked. His eyes closed for a moment, then popped back open as he shook his head slightly. His mouth worked for a moment, until his voice finally came out as barely a squeak. "... _what...?"_ He was concerned that his ears didn't seem to be working properly; Yume couldn't _possibly_ have meant what he thought he'd just heard!

Interestingly enough, though Yume's human form didn't have eyebrows, Yuki could still clearly sense one going up in disbelief as those depthless obsidian eyes blinked at him. He swallowed, hard; then asked, "Who-do you mean?"

Yume leaned back from him a bit, standing straight and unconsciously proud as her eyes bored disdainfully into him. Yuki's breath came a tad easier at the added distance, though her expression somehow irritated him more than it should. The Rat's spirit was all but completely convinced that the cat-turned-human was about to eat Yuki, _right now!_

" _He-_ whom I chose as Master. He loves you... _all_ of you...though you have done nothing to earn it, and do not seem to appreciate it. _Why?"_

Yuki stared at her, a shiver of fear quivering through his mind as he began to wonder about his own sanity. He fell back on life-long beliefs and attitudes in defense. "What are you talking about? Kyo hates me-always has, always will; just as I hate him! And who is 'all of us'?" He glared at the strange girl, the beginnings of anger clenching his jaw and his fists, his breath speeding up and shortening as his asthma started to kick in from stress.

Obsidian eyes slowly blinked as they stared at him, measuring. Her head cocked slightly as she ghosted sideways a step or two, Yuki automatically turning to keep facing her. Instinct and the Rat's spirit forbade him to let her be unwatched at his back. Curiosity and puzzlement grew on her delicate features, as she realized his confusion was not feigned.

"You-all of you Sohmas. His blood-kin." Her eyes narrowed slightly with a touch of anger. "The Others have told me, _he_ goes to see _That One_ when the moon hides her face-and always comes back...hurt. Sometimes, _That One_ only beats him. Sometimes...it is...worse." That depthless gaze bored into Yuki's very brain, making him shift back a step without even realizing it, even as he quickly realized who _'That One'_ surely had to be. With that venomous emphasis on the words, it could only be one person; whose mere name sent a thrill of terror through Yuki's veins as he remembered his own past encounters with the Sohma Clan Head. Yume was speaking again before his disoriented mind could grasp the meaning of 'the moon hiding her face', or who 'the Others' could be.

"None of you have done anything to foster his loyalty, or his regard; yet he is willing to suffer for you, to bear the brunt of your scorn-just so you cursed ones can have a scapegoat, someone worse off than you to make you feel better about yourselves. He could easily win any fight with you; but he purposefully holds back-has no intention of winning. He refuses to answer me _why;_ refuses to admit it, even to himself. So I ask you: _Why_ is it so important, that you two be enemies?"

Yuki blinked his confusion, silent with the force of it; wondering at his own sanity yet again. His mind refused to understand exactly what she was saying; instead focusing on the impossibility of _Kyo_ ever mastering his volatile temper enough to beat him in a fight. Even if the cat had been unreasonably calm lately. Even if Yuki knew very well that Kyo was his better at martial arts, when the cat's temper wasn't controlling him.

Was Yume trying to tell him-Kyo's temper had always been a ruse? An excuse for his losing? That made no sense!

Before he could organize his thoughts enough to find his voice, Yume's face took on a mildly disgusted expression and she snorted, delicately; turning away from him. She took a step towards the door before swinging back around, hair swaying wildly about her as she glared at him.

"You don't _know_. Do you." Her gaze went scornful, then pensively. "It has something to do with _That One._ _He_ doesn't trust _That One;_ and you cursed ones all are _bound_...like chained dogs." Her eyes snapped back into focus, angry determination clear in them. " _He_ will not answer; and you cannot. So-I will simply meet _That One_ for myself, when next _he_ goes." She nodded sharply with her decision, spinning gracefully and all but flowing from Yuki's room as he stared after her, mind still too stunned to think clearly. His emotions were a mess-a writhing mixture of anger, confusion, disbelief; a strange, heart-felt ache; denial...

Yuki suddenly started and took an involuntary step after Yume, alarm ringing through him as her words truly registered in his mind. She wanted to meet Akito? That was impossible! Human or cat, Akito wouldn't allow it; she would only get Kyo punished for trying, and maybe-his mind whispered the thought-maybe Akito would become angry enough to have Kyo locked up!

Wait-why should _he_ care if Kyo was punished, or even locked up? It was the stupid _cat,_ after all! Wouldn't it be wonderful, not to have to worry about the cat attacking him at any moment? Not to have to watch him get along so easily with strangers, as Yuki could not? Except-now that he'd been paying attention, it certainly seemed like Kyo gave a damn about Yuki's visits to the Clan Head; the cat was _worried_ about the rat, his supposed worst enemy. How could Yuki not be at least a little concerned for the cat's welfare, in return? Even if Kyo obviously didn't want Yuki knowing about his concern?

Yume's words about Kyo's curse making the rest of the Zodiac-cursed feel better about themselves came back to him. Was _that_...the true function of the cat-cursed, the reason he was traditionally locked away? To be despised by the others cursed by the Zodiac, who could then feel superior to the poor fool who was suffering under the cat's dual curse, as well as being caged for merely being born at the wrong time?

" _It's not my fault! It's not my fault!"_

Echoes of child-Kyo's voice raised in that anguished cry during his mother's funeral ricocheted almost painfully through Yuki's mind. He couldn't really blame Kyo for trying to pin the blame for his miserable life onto the rat-cursed, when he thought about it; everyone else certainly tried to blame the cat for all of _their_ troubles...and the Rat was the one who supposedly tricked the Cat into missing God's Banquet, in the old Zodiac story. He doubted _he_ could have handled the crushing despair Kyo must live with on a daily basis for anywhere near this long; he was barely handling the curse of the Rat's spirit without falling to pieces!

Who did Kyo have to look to, assuring him things could be worse-but weren't? Who would even try to _say_ it to him?

Yuki's lips drew tight over his teeth as his expression firmed with determination. He purposefully walked out of his room and after Yume, chasing after the bit of black hair he saw disappearing into Kyo's room before he could change his mind. By the time he stood in the doorway, the familiar long-haired black cat had leapt up and settled herself comfortably in her usual spot right in the middle of Kyo's bed.

The cat-cursed boy gave Yume a startled look from his spot rummaging in a drawer, a neatly folded shirt in one hand, before turning to find Yuki standing in his doorway. Crimson eyes narrowed as a sneer curled his lip.

"What are _you_ doing here?"

Ignoring Kyo's unencouraging tone, Yuki stared at Yume, who stared oh-so-innocently back at him as only a cat can manage. "I just had the most...interesting...conversation." Violet-gray eyes rose to meet confused, intense red that were shrouded in what could easily be confused for an angry expression, but was actually just nervous defensiveness. A surge of contrariness surged through Yuki as he struggled to form the words for what he wanted to know. He ended up loosing his tongue only to blurt out, "Why do you always let me win?"

The rat clearly saw the almost terrified shock that flashed across his cousin's face as the cat jerked back in surprise, before Kyo shuttered his eyes behind a flare of anger that was halfhearted, at best. Kyo's breathing went strained and his muscles tensed, his body unconsciously moving the rest of the way into a defensive ready position as Yuki took a rather aggressive step towards him, never breaking his gaze. The cat couldn't seem to find any words to say, especially not with the rat suddenly so close in his face; looking so... _stressed._

Kyo glanced towards Yume, who was casually grooming her shoulder, ignoring both boys while projecting quite the determined air of innocence. Red eyes narrowed as the cat-cursed boy growled, quickly realizing his 'pet' had both _introduced_ herself to his cousin in the manner in which he was used to seeing her; and had raised questions in that analytical brain that he'd have the devil of a time to avoid answering. He turned back to Yuki, and his anger slipped from his mind at the look of confused dismay on the rat's face. He'd taken too long to try to answer. Yuki's voice when he spoke again was barely more than strangled whisper.

"So...it's _true_...! _Why?_ " Hands fisting, Yuki took another step towards Kyo as his voice rose. The cat instinctively stepped back. "What do you have to gain, fighting with me all the time-only to lose?"

Kyo squirmed within his skin and looked everywhere but at Yuki, desperately trying to think up a plausible excuse; soundly cursing himself for not spouting a denial right away. His silence had doomed any attempt to deny it; Yuki would never believe it now. A cold shiver rippled its way up his spine. He turned a downright venomous gaze on Yume, who stopped her attempt at unconcerned grooming and calmly met his eyes, not intimidated in the least by his anger. She'd done this to him on purpose, he knew. First she'd made him think about his fights with Yuki, that by all rights he _should_ be winning-then made him consciously realize he did give a damn about his 'hated' cousin's welfare. It had taken him until Yuki's last visit to Akito to understand why he'd never allow himself to win; not even to save himself from the cage Akito had ready for him after graduation.

Yume drew herself up to sit primly on his futon, watching him closely. Kyo snorted with disgusted resignation, knowing cats-most especially, _this_ cat-much too well to ever think he could hope to influence her actions. Whatever he said to Yuki, Yume would quite clearly contradict him if it wasn't the truth. He wished he could damn her for ripping away the comfortable blanket of denial he'd been wrapped in...but knew he never would. Painful as it was, knowing his own motivations gave him a sense of peace he'd never felt before, bittersweet as it was.

" _Tell_ me!" Yuki was nose-to-nose with him now, glaring up the scant difference in their heights almost with desperation. The intensity in his violet eyes told Kyo he _wasn't_ going to let this go.

Kyo wistfully considered lying, in spite of Yume; but knew he wasn't good enough at a straight lie to convince even Tohru, the most trusting person he knew. The only kind of lying he was any good at was through misdirection. He then considered making a break for the door, or just plain jumping right out his window-but this was _his_ room; and besides, Yuki would quite possibly plant himself on Kyo's bed and wait for the cat to return, however long it took.

Not to mention what else that traitorous Yume might decide to tell him, without Kyo there to head her off!

Kyo had opened his mouth a couple times, still struggling to think of something to say, when a glaring Yuki reached up and grabbed a double fist-full of his collar, yanking Kyo nose-to-nose with him. The suspicious shine to angry violet eyes, dilated nearly black from the recent shocks to his system, shocked away the anger Kyo had been trying to dredge up. His own hands came up and gripped Yuki's wrists on pure instinct, ready to wrench them away even if it meant ruining his shirt...but he couldn't seem to find any strength in his arms when he realized that Yuki was trembling, ever so slightly; more upset than Kyo had ever seen him-at least when Akito wasn't involved.

Their gazes locked for a couple minutes, until Kyo's eyes finally slid sullenly down and to the side, his body slumping as his tense readiness deserted him. His lips tightened into a thin line as he carefully pried Yuki's hands from his shirt. The rat allowed it, still staring intensely at Kyo's face, but didn't back off at all otherwise. Still holding to Yuki's wrists, Kyo brought his eyes back up to meet that almost anguished gaze. He flinched, slightly; Yuki could almost _see_ the desire to avoid answering in Kyo's face as the cat struggled to collect his thoughts.

Finally, Kyo stepped back, letting go of Yuki's wrists. His breathing was rough as he glanced once at an intently staring Yume, tension cording his muscles as his hands fisted at his sides. Yuki remained quiet, hoping his so-annoying cousin would give him an answer he could understand.

-.-.-.-


	3. Neko no Yume Cat of Dreams Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**Disclaimer:** I own neither Natsuki Takaya's 'Fruits Basket' nor Matsuri Akino's 'Petshop of Horrors'._
> 
> _Enjoy!_
> 
> _**2-24-07 EDIT--** Whoops! 800 words snuck in when I re-read this...e-heh!_

### Chapter 3

"I'm not stupid." Red eyes bored into violet, and Yuki fought a near-hysterical urge to argue about that. He _knew_ Kyo wasn't stupid, not really; in spite of all the insults to that effect he habitually heaped on the cat. Kyo wouldn't have survived as long as he had under the Cat's curse, not with anything like even the meager 'freedom' he was allowed, if he were truly stupid; he'd have gotten himself locked up long ago.

Kyo's expression was oddly bland in spite of the strange, blazing emotion in his eyes that Yuki couldn't quite identify. Satisfied that Yuki wasn't going to interrupt, while at the same time disappointed by that same fact, Kyo sighed and asked in a rough voice, "What the hell do you think would happen, if Akito ever heard I'd beat his precious _fa-vo-rite_ in a fight?"

The rat blinked. He hadn't expected Kyo's explanation to involve their 'god', though in hind-sight, he probably should have; Akito seemed to be at the center of so many of the Zodiac-cursed Sohma troubles... Before he could find his voice, Kyo went on in a deadly serious tone, "I figure the day I beat you, is the day Akito locks me up for good." Kyo's face lowered, orange bangs partially covering his eyes. "He _wants_ me to fight you, though. He made a bet with me, when I was six years old, that he thought would guarantee it." His face was grim as he hesitated for a moment, searching Yuki's expression. Not finding anything but sober attention, he drew a breath and admitted, "Akito promised-if I can beat you, before graduation, he won't-" Yuki saw a shiver ripple through Kyo, making suddenly misty red eyes shimmer. "-he won't-lock me up, for the rest of my life."

A shiver ran down Yuki's own spine at this admission. That bet-certainly explained some things...like Kyo's constant, unreasonable-seeming attacks; and his relentless 'anger' at the rat. Yuki drew in a deep breath as understanding nibbled at the edges of his thoughts. Akito had locked the rat up, when he was still a small child...he knew how terrible it could be, to be confined away from all human contact but for Akito; left alone with your own imagination, and no guarantee you'd ever be let out again.

Kyo saw the sickly understanding in his face, and gave a sardonic smirk full of such barely suppressed despair that it made Yuki's neck hairs twitch to attention. The cat's voice grew shaky for a moment. "Yeah. I-never really thought it through, before; not consciously. Yume..." Red eyes flickered towards the black cat, then back to Yuki. Kyo swallowed, then continued, "Yume made me realize that I've been-hiding behind my temper, when I fight you." The cat gave a careless shrug of one shoulder, red eyes sliding uncomfortably off to one side. "Besides, Akito never promised not to lock me up immediately if I beat you. He didn't even promise not to lock me up at all; just-not for the rest of my life. Which means he could lock me up until a few days before I die of old age, without breaking his word. -As if I believed he'd keep it in the first place!"

More than a touch of the cat's habitual anger had crept back into his voice with that last, scornful sentence. Yuki could hardly blame him; Akito was a master manipulator, and didn't feel it necessary to hold himself to his own word, anyway. Breath catching in his chest, the rat shivered again...suddenly wondering about what else Akito might have said to his cousin, over the years. What the Clan Head said to Yuki was emotionally abusive enough, and Akito _liked_ his rat!

His eyes drifted down to Kyo's left wrist, and the bracelet of black and white beads that encircled it. An image of the horrible, twisted monstrosity that Kyo transformed into without that seal passed across his mind's eye. His breath hitched again, as he wondered-would Akito have left that bracelet alone? The Clan Head was cruel; and usually capricious...taking delight in the anguish of his Zodiac-cursed even as he held them close, claiming to 'love' them. Yuki could easily imagine Akito taking the cat's beads away, forcing the transformation. Forcing the _pain..._ remembering the first and only time he'd ever witnessed Kyo's transformation into the Monster form of the Cat-cursed, he clearly remembered one tiny portion of his mind, that was not utterly horrified by what he was seeing, noting that it seemed a great deal more painful than their regular animal transformation.

For the first time, Yuki truly thought about what it would be _like,_ for the cat; to be locked away from all human contact-but for Akito. Possibly-without those precious beads. He still didn't think he liked his infuriating cousin; but Kyo...he didn't deserve _that!_ _No one_ did!

Not even Akito; even after all he'd done to their family-to Yuki, himself. There was no telling how much of his insanity was the direct result of his portion of the curse, after all. They could feel the animal Spirits within them; what must having the 'god' inside you be like?

The rat held one hand up, staring in bemusement at the way it wouldn't stop shaking; even when he grabbed it with the other. He clutched it tightly to his chest as his breath wheezed tightly through his lungs, only belatedly recognizing the beginnings of an asthma attack. He closed his eyes and concentrated on calming down and taking steady breaths, if not deep.

He didn't realize just how focused he'd become, or how bad the attack really was, until he felt strong hands half-way roughly grabbing his shoulders, yanking him over to unceremoniously plop him down on Kyo's futon. Eyes popping open in surprise, Yuki stared up into nervous red eyes only a foot from his own, feeling too dazed and short of breath to protest. Kyo looked like he expected to be hit into a wall at any moment, but was stubbornly determined not to be deterred by it, keeping a firm grip on a rather disoriented Yuki to keep the gasping, swaying rat upright.

"Calm _down,_ damnit; remember what Shisho taught you, damn rat! _Breathe!_ In; out...slow and steady... _focus..._ "

Yuki was amazed enough at Kyo's rough-voiced coaching that he followed it without thought, Kazuma-sensei's long-ago lessons echoing in his mind's ear. He stared uncomprehendingly at the cat for several minutes, conscious thought suspended as he breathed in tandem with Kyo's urgings; until his lungs finally relaxed enough that his breathing was no longer so labored. Then he looked off to the side, cheeks warm from mild embarrassment at having had the attack at all-never mind who had so unexpectedly helped him through it!

Yume stared knowingly up into his eyes from right beside him, never blinking. Yuki felt trapped by those obsidian eyes, unable to look away as they appeared to grow larger the longer he looked; the Rat's spirit within him completely frozen with fear.

" _Hey!_ Stay with me, here! _No_ zoning out in _my_ _room,_ damn rat!"

Yuki jerked back around at the alarmed note in Kyo's voice, feeling slightly dizzy. He closed his eyes and drew in one wonderfully almost-deep breath, letting it out slowly before opening his eyes to stare at his rather nonplussed cousin. Kyo obviously had no clue what to do with Yuki, and was becoming quite worried, almost in spite of himself-having witnessed some of the rat's worst asthma attacks in the past, that resulted in Yuki being bed-ridden for days afterwards. Not that Yuki was aware of all the times Kyo had watched him.

Gathering his thoroughly scattered thoughts, Yuki remembered what Kyo had told him only minutes before. The bet with Akito... He didn't want to squander this opportunity to find answers to questions he'd never thought to ask, before.

Vague memories of the first few times he'd ever seen Kyo, and his desperate childhood wish for a friend of _any_ kind floated through his head. If it hadn't been for their curses- Yuki suddenly, clearly remembered how child-Kyo's behavior had immediately changed, when the young cat found out that Yuki was cursed by the Rat's spirit. He wondered just what the Cat's spirit felt, about him, about the Rat's spirit; how much of Kyo's anger wasn't-really _Kyo's_.

If it hadn't been for their curses-

Yuki thought of all the progress they'd made towards at least tolerating each other, since Tohru came to live with them; everything they'd learned about each other, that they'd never even considered before she came into their lives. The similarities between them that they'd refused to see, on their own. And Tohru's dearest wish, that the two of them could be friends...

Then he thought of Akito; pitting everyone in the family against each other, trying to ensure _he_ was the only center of their lives... Yume had said that Kyo went to see 'That One'-when was it...? _"When the moon hides her face._ " That sounded like the new moon; which meant about once a month. Thinking back on it, Yuki realized that since they all started living with Shigure, he _had_ noticed that Kyo tended to disappear, every once in a while...about once a month...usually for a day or two; sometimes longer. They all just assumed he was off sulking, or had run off to Kazuma-sensei's. He was known for longer absences in the past-most notably, those four months right before he showed up at Shigure's.

Those four months...that Shigure joked Kyo had spent up on the mountain, "fighting bears"... Who was witness to where Kyo had truly been? Kazuma-sensei hadn't been with him; the individual family karate lessons hadn't been interrupted. Kyo had never _said_ where he'd been; Shigure had just tossed out that ridiculous supposition, and no one had cared to question.

" _Yuki!_ Damnit-"

Yuki realized Kyo had been calling to him for several minutes, even shaking lightly at him. He shook his head and stared intently into the nearly panicking cat's eyes.

"Kyo. You weren't fighting bears, were you."

Kyo blinked in utter confusion, his face plainly showing he thought his cousin had gone completely _insane!_ "Bears? What the _hell_ are you _talking_ abou-"

"-Before you came to live with us at Shigure's house," Yuki impatiently cut him off. "Those four months you disappeared." His gaze sharpened, boring into the cat, seeing understanding all but explode through Kyo with a sharp intake of the cat's breath and a shrinking of pupils in red eyes. "I don't believe you were up on the mountain. And I don't believe it was Kazuma-sensei you were with."

Kyo drew back, jerking his hands from Yuki's shoulders as if burned; staring almost in horror at his cousin. His breathing was suddenly more strained than Yuki's as panic flooded his eyes. Yuki's lips thinned; he'd never seen such outright _fear_ on his fiery-tempered cousin's face before.

"I think-you were with Akito. As you've been going to see him, every month..."

"You-!" Words seemed to strangle in Kyo's throat as he stared at Yume with a look that eloquently spoke of betrayal.

"What does he do?" Kyo's head swung back around, and Yuki caught and held his eyes. _"What does Akito do,_ to you?"

Kyo backed another step, eyes glazing, breath strangling in his throat; then another; and another, until he stumbled into the wall by the door. Yuki realized a now shivering Kyo wasn't seeing him, or even the room about them; his eyes were twitching in response to things long done. The cat was locked in a too-strong memory. The rat had experienced enough of those on his own to understand what he was seeing, unexpected as it was.

All it took, for Yuki-was mention of Akito's name.

He'd never seen _Kyo,_ of all people have a reaction like this, though! What had _happened,_ during those four months? Kyo was the strongest person Yuki knew; he always bounced back, annoyingly ready to fight against everyone and everything. He never let anyone see his fear, projecting anger in its place-even when Akito was there.

The rat had risen to his feet and taken a hesitant step towards his cousin when unexpected pressure against his shins made him stop and look down at Yume, who was leaning into his legs to stop him. She stared up into his eyes, managing to convey her temper without a hiss or a single raised hair. Those obsidian eyes were very eloquent.

Yuki plopped back down on the futon in surprise as she stalked over to Kyo, who had slid down the wall and now sat slump-shouldered on the floor, knees up and head lowered, seeming to huddle into himself even without physically curling inwards. His hands were limp on the floor at his sides. Yume shoved her head under one arm to snuggle against Kyo, nudging him and giving out small feline sounds of comfort.

Yuki was _almost_ ready for the moment when he suddenly didn't see a long-haired black cat anymore. The black-haired young woman now tucked under Kyo's arm wrapped both of her arms about him, hugging him tightly. Yuki watched as Kyo's arms slowly, hesitantly moved to hold her back, closing about her almost convulsively at the last moment as he buried his face in her hair, shuddering visibly for a moment. Yume gave a soft grunt with the force of it, and he loosened his hold. Kyo's face stayed down as he raised his head, orange hair shading his eyes from view.

Yume pulled one arm free to reach up and cup Kyo's cheek, trying to pull his face around so she could stare intently into his eyes. He resisted, turning his head away, in spite of the quickly obvious strength she was using. His cheek reddened about the whiteness where her fingers pressed into his skin.

Yume's eyes narrowed, her lips thinning. "Kyo-sama."

Yuki saw Kyo's flinch at the honorific. He kept quiet, watching.

"Kyo-sama. I am coming with you, this time."

Kyo's head whipped around and he glared at her, his expression a strange mix of anger, and terror. _"No!"_

Yuki didn't know what Yume was referring to, but Kyo's reaction had been definitive. Yume didn't flinch at his harsh tone. Her eyes narrowed to slits. _"Yessss."_

Yuki wasn't certain just what happened for the next few minutes, once Kyo shoved Yume away and flung himself to his feet to confront her as she sprang lithely to hers. They weren't speaking much in human language; both were hissing and spitting and outright yowling at each other, just like a pair of feral cats fighting.

The Rat's spirit nearly had a coronary within Yuki; his own heart spasmed with the terrified panic ricocheting within his curse, driving him up and flat against the farthest wall. Images of being shredded by sharp claws flooded his mind, making it hard to think straight. By the time Yuki had sorted out the Rat's terror, his Cat-cursed cousin and the human-shaped cat had settled their dispute. Yume was standing tall and proud by the door, glaring angry satisfaction at Kyo; who was standing in front of her, face averted and hands fisted at his sides, literally shaking with anger. It was clear to Yuki that Yume had gotten her way-if only because Kyo couldn't figure out a way to stop her. It didn't take much thought to know Kyo could forbid it until he was blue in the face-she'd simply follow after him, unless he could find a way to confine her, or maybe tie her up. Which might not hold, even if he managed it.

"I will see you the day after tomorrow." With that, Yume was out the door and off down the hall. It appeared that confinement was quite out of the question, now; there was no way Kyo would be able to catch hold of the too-canny Yume until they were face-to-face with Akito. Kyo stared after her for a few minutes, breathing deeply in an effort to calm his temper. It seemed he'd forgotten all about Yuki.

"The day after tomorrow...the new moon." Kyo spun and glared at Yuki when the rat spoke; he stared calmly back in the face of the cat's now foul mood. Yuki repeated the question that Kyo had not answered-"What does Akito do to you?" The rat was fairly certain he knew the answer, at least the basics if not specifics; but he wanted- _needed_ -for Kyo to admit it out loud. If they didn't start talking to each other, Tohru's dream of friendship between them would never come to be. Upside-down as his world had turned, Yuki found he'd decided that Tohru's dream was at least worth trying. He truly didn't know his tempestuous cousin well enough to decide if he would like to be friends with him, or not.

Kyo's angry expression melted to anguish as he turned his face away, staring out his window. His voice was almost too soft to hear when he said, "You know damned well what that bastard does." Muscles corded in his neck and shoulders as his hands fisted tightly enough that his nails drew blood from his palms.

That didn't really answer Yuki's question; Kyo was circling about it. Yuki knew what Akito did to _him-_ he wasn't even sure what happened to Hatsuharu, let alone any of the others. None of them ever talked about it. He got the feeling Kyo would never give him a straight answer, though. Which likely meant it was worse than anything Yuki could think up, knowing how Kyo hated admitting to injury, or anything he thought of as a 'weakness'. Knowing Kyo's volatile temper, and Akito's even shorter one; and the cruelty that dominated the Clan Head's words and actions...

So. There was only one way for him to find out.

"I want to go with you, too."

Yuki would forever remember the look on the cat's face at that statement. If things hadn't been so serious, he'd have fallen over laughing. Kyo couldn't even stand straight, he was so shocked; he staggered sideways and slammed shoulder-first into a wall, eyes nearly popping right out of his head and jaw figuratively bouncing off the floor. He was very obviously completely and utterly speechless, unable to pry his eyes from Yuki.

Smirking slightly even as a thrill of fear at what he was thinking of doing iced down his veins, Yuki nodded once, not looking away. He wasn't entirely certain himself just exactly what his reasons were; he just knew he felt compelled to go. "I never knew-that Akito...that _you_ were...seeing Akito, too." He paused, and swallowed at the lump tying to form in his throat. "I'll...stay at the main gate, if you insist; but I want to-to _be_ there."

Yuki wasn't certain just how to say that he wanted Kyo to have the reassurance that someone _knew_ where he was; and would...help him back to Shigure's, if necessary. The plain words didn't want to come-not to _Kyo,_ who'd been his enemy for so long; and he couldn't think how better to allude to his intentions. He just knew-it made a difference, somehow, at least to _him,_ when he realized that Kyo knew...and worried about...what happened to him, when Yuki went to see the Clan Head. He felt obligated somehow to offer Kyo that same...comfort in return, inadequate as it seemed.

His staying out at the gate might be the smartest thing for both of them; if Yuki came too near, Akito would hear of it-and that wouldn't be a good thing. Akito would want to see Yuki; and he might...be more violent with Kyo than he would normally be. Yume had said-that Kyo was beaten...and sometimes 'worse'. Yuki didn't think he wanted to know what that 'worse' might be. He remembered Hatori's eye, and Rin's 'fall'...and many other such results of the Clan Head's more vicious twists of temper.

And...Akito might insist that Yuki would have to _watch._ He didn't think he could stand to see the kinds of things Akito was likely to do to the cat; even if it was merely the same poisonous verbal treatment that he, himself received. And if he dared to interfere, in any way-Yuki didn't want to think about what might happen; to him, and to Kyo. Akito would-not be pleased, if the rat were to dare try to defend the cat, in any way at all. Kyo was right; Akito _wanted_ them fighting, wanted them to be enemies. The bet with Kyo; and the things he'd always said to Yuki, about the cat-it was obvious, though Yuki couldn't figure out _why._

Kyo had recovered himself somewhat, and was now staring intently at his cousin; thinking. Whatever he was trying to see, he apparently found it; with one last clenching of his fists and jaw, the cat drew in a deep, shaky breath, nodding slowly in acceptance as he released it. Shadowed red eyes stayed locked with violet for a moment more-then Kyo was gone, out the door and off down the hall, down the stairs and out the door before Yuki could more than blink in surprise. A yelp from the living room proved Shigure's presence as Kyo nearly ran him over in his rush to leave, the Dog-cursed writer's plaintive questions ignored as if unspoken.

The rat wasn't certain which surprised him more-the unexpected speed of Kyo's departure, or the cat's seemingly easy acceptance of Yuki's request. Perhaps Kyo didn't think it worth arguing, after losing the fight with Yume...? He decided it didn't matter and shrugged, releasing some built-up tension in a long sigh. Kyo had agreed; and one thing he did know about his cousin, was that Kyo wouldn't go back on his word, no matter how reluctantly given. It was getting him to give it that was the hard part.

That evening the rat found a slip of paper on his bed, with a time written on it and the words "Your 'secret base'". He nodded to himself upon reading it, suddenly glancing up at movement in his doorway barely in time to catch a glimpse of his retreating cousin.

Yuki and Kyo didn't exchange another word until the following evening, when they met at Yuki's garden. Kyo had even left early for school, avoiding the rat as much as possible-maybe afraid of getting into a fight, and having Yuki withdraw his offer of support...? Yuki wasn't sure, but wasn't about to press. That Kyo might be...nervous...enough to welcome the support of the cousin who was supposed to be his worst enemy...the odd thought confused and comforted the rat, both at the same time. It did reaffirm his decision to try getting to know Kyo better, though. The 'idiot cat' he'd thought he knew would never have done as Kyo was doing.

The cat, the rat, and a feline Yume arrived at the Sohma main estate early in the evening. The sun was only just nearing the horizon, casting deepening orange rays across everything as they walked, sending lengthening shadows off to their sides. Kyo had his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his dark blue hoodie, his shoulders hunching slightly as if he were chilled; nervous red eyes captivated by the front gate. Yuki walked almost calmly a couple steps behind him, careful to keep out of Kyo's direct attention-the cat was skittish and spoiling for a good fight to blow off some of the pressure building up in him, as he anticipated what Akito was going to do. A fight wouldn't really help anything; it would only ensure that Kyo was dusty and rumpled for his meeting with the Clan Head.

Yume stalked regally behind them both, head and tail held high, long black hair rippling and flowing in the light breeze. She appeared to be completely unconcerned by what might happen, all too soon.

She didn't stop where Yuki took up a position against the wall, just out of sight of the guard stationed not so ceremonially at the gate. She followed Kyo right on in, completely ignoring the guard; who gave Kyo an unreadable look, making no comment. The man then looked right past Yume, as if he didn't even see her. Yuki watched worriedly until the two were through the gate and out of his sight, then settled himself more comfortably against the wall, to wait. Yume could always come and get him if Kyo needed help getting off the grounds.

No one protested Kyo's presence, even though the shunned Cat-cursed Sohma was traditionally not even allowed onto the grounds of the Main House. Akito would do with him what he wished, and the Clan would purposefully never notice. He'd been coming every month for so long that most of them truly no longer saw him, even with they nearly stepped right into him.

Kyo watched all these relatives of his with unreadable eyes, face oddly blank. His step never faltered as he made directly for Akito's own house, Yume at his heels. He only paused for a moment at the door, staring at it, determinedly ignoring the memories trying to surface in his mind; then he slowly reached a hand out and let himself in, knowing none would help or hinder him on his way.

Akito waited within. A shiver ripped through Kyo; sickly anticipation of what was to come. The worst part, was _knowing_ that he'd never be able to keep control over his own temper; and thus would make this session all the worse than it might have been.

The Clan Head was sprawled indolently in his favorite round window, eyes turned listlessly to the world outside his home. Kyo entered the room and stopped in the usual place, dead center; waiting with clenched jaw and fists for Akito's notice. Yume settled herself primly at his feet, cocking her head as she stared unblinking at Akito.

When the Clan Head finally deigned to turn his head and take notice of his Monster, the first thing his eyes took in was the unexpected young woman with the amazingly long, flowing black hair standing at the Monster's side. Mad eyes widened as Akito's temper rose, twisting his features from a sinister version of Sohma-handsome to something-ugly. He drew his thin self up and threw one arm out imperiously to point at her as he yelled at Kyo, spittle flying from his mouth with the force of his unreasoning fury, "Who is _she,_ and _what_ is shedoing here!"

Akito glared at the disdainful Yume as the completely unimpressed cat-turned-girl stared down her nose right back at him, and Kyo tried not to shiver in fear at her side as his mouth and throat went dust-dry. Yume spoke disdainfully before Kyo could gather his wits enough to respond to his 'god's' demand, not having anticipated Akito would see her in her human form.

"You are no god."

Kyo cringed, his mind blanking of thought as pure, unadulterated _panic_ smothered all thought. He barely had the presence of mind to keep from stepping away from the towering inferno of _rage_ that consumed his Clan Head and all but levitated Akito to pin his maddest glare on Yume from barely a foot away. Shivers wracked Kyo's wiry frame as he fought the instinct of the Cat's spirit, as well as his own, to _run!_

"And who are _you,_ to say such a thing to _me!"_ Akito's hissing voice was low and poisonous. Yume did not flinch, or blink, or otherwise show any reaction to it. Kyo stared at them with wide, rather frightened eyes, unable to stop his shivering; and not really caring, just then. The oppressive, smothering feeling rolling off of Akito made him feel as if he were being drowned in the Clan Head's rage; it lapped about him and over him and _pressed_ into him, trying to squeeze the life and light from him. He couldn't imagine how Yume was withstanding it! He couldn't move, not even to raise his hand in entreaty; couldn't breathe with his frozen lungs; couldn't speak-couldn't scream...!

Yume slowly, almost lazily cocked her head to the side, staring curiously at Akito. It was obvious he had no power over her; certainly nothing like he had over Kyo, and the rest of his Zodiac-cursed! There was no trace of fear in her hard obsidian eyes; and not even a hint of respect. One hand settled on an up-shot hip as she settled to stand more comfortably.

"Truth is truth. I _know_ gods. You are not one."

Icy fear poured through Kyo's veins. There was a great deal he still didn't know about his newest friend, but he'd never known her to lie. She was a great deal like him-too blunt for politeness' sake. Whether she knew any true gods or not, _they_ weren't here before her-Akito was; and Akito was all too likely to exact instant and painful retribution.

Akito looked like he was about to have a melt-down. His eyes had widened impossibly; his lips pulled back from clenched teeth, a strangled sound of fury rising in his throat. His body was tensed tight enough to shiver; his hands fisted until his nails drew blood from his palms. The coppery tang tickled at Kyo's attention even through his fear. The cat used that faint distraction to try and regain control of his own body, desperate to be able to do _something_ when-not if!-Akito tried to hurt his friend.

Yume was the picture of unconcern, bored indifference settling over her face as she covered her mouth with one hand-and delicately yawned.

Kyo managed a stagger of a step towards them when Akito exploded, whipping one of those skeletal arms up and back and towards Yume's face in a movement faster than the sickly Clan Head should be able to make. A thin, pained sound was torn from Kyo's throat, that turned to surprise when Yume so-casually moved her head _just_ out of the way of the blow.

The Cat-cursed boy's eyes widened and he swallowed, impressed in spite of himself as Yume proceeded to play a mutated form of 'Cat and Mouse' with Akito; dodging safely out of the way of each and every blow the madman launched at her with lazy, seemingly unhurried movements, that included casually bending over to brush a scuff-mark off her boot. She barely seemed to pay any real attention to his attacks.

Akito grew more and more furious with each miss, exerting himself more each time he tried. Spittle flew from his mouth and sweat soon dripped from his face; his breathing became labored and short. He staggered more and more with each miss; it was obvious he was quickly coming to the end of his strength, and was courting an attack of some kind. He began to grunt and growl, and then to spew breathless curses at Yume, who seemingly paid them no mind-treating the furious Clan Head as if his wrath was no concern of hers.

Kyo felt like he was being shoved to the ground, Akito's furious aura growing heavier and heavier with the Clan Head's anger. It pushed at him and _pushed_ at him, wrapping tendrils about his thoughts and trying to squeeze out everything but the overwhelming _fear-_

Sinking heavily to his knees, Kyo brought both hands up to hold his head, gritting his teeth and clenching his eyes shut as he tried desperately to break free of Akito's influence. _This_ was how their 'god' truly controlled the Zodiac-cursed. They had to exert a ridiculous amount of effort to go against him in even the smallest of matters; and it grew more difficult the more they did it. It quickly became habit to obey him, which made resistance harder yet. Other than Kyo, Shigure was the only one of them to purposefully go against Akito's wishes with any regularity-and the Dog-cursed writer usually preferred much more subtle methods than physical opposition, entertaining Akito with his 'rebellion' enough to not earn nearly as much retribution.

That knowledge didn't help the cat as he fought against the overpowering pressure. His own growing desperation almost seemed to be feeding Akito's suffocating hold over him. If it were in his nature, he might have tried to nstop fighting it and see if calm and passive resistance worked any better...but Kyo just wasn't built for even pretending to submissiveness.

Then Akito turned to the Cat-cursed boy, murder in his eyes for Kyo's having brought this-this-infuriating **_creature_** into his home! The full force of the Clan Head's rage surged through the curse's link directly into Kyo's mind as he'd never felt it before, numbing all thought and sending the Cat's spirit into an agonized convulsion with its power. Pain ripped through Kyo's whole being, almost making him pass out-drowning out the comparatively minor sting of the blow to his face that split his lip open and loosened teeth, sending bright red droplets flying.

Kyo very nearly didn't notice the second blow to the side of his head that rattled his brains and sent him down and sliding across the floor on his shoulder, sudden blackness tunneling his vision. He didn't hear the enraged yowl that Yume let loose at this treatment of her chosen 'Master'...

-.-.-.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Hmmm. I guess I'd better mention that when I write a story, a specific pairing_ isn't _the focal point of the whole thing-hence why I don't mention that in the summary. The summary is a lead-in hook to what the story's about, after all; and this one's about Kyo and his unexpected_ pet _, not KyoxOC, or KxY/T, etc. (Geeze, that always looks too much like algebra to me; I keep trying to solve the equation! Tsk.)_
> 
>  _Romance might come into a story of mine, as a necessary plot element-but that's not why I'm writing it! I do not write lemons, either; and I probably won't ever write Shonen Ai or Shojo Ai-not unless it's between background characters, anyway; and definitely not as the main story focus. I don't mind_ reading _that type of story; I just don't_ write _'em. That doesn't mean I won't leave room for interpretation, if you as a reader want to see certain characters as having that type of relationship. But this fic, especially, isn't a romance in any way, shape, or form! Yume_ isn't _human, and Kyo-for all he's cursed-isn't really a cat. (Petshop of Horror fans should know where things usually go between the 'pets' and their owners-when the owner behaves and doesn't have a melt-down, anyway!) And I think poor Yuki gets 'stuck' falling for Kyo, and vice-versa, in quite enough stories as it is. It would take a deal of development to get it to happen believably,_ without _a thick layer of wishful thinking on the reader's part. It's hard enough turning them into friends!_
> 
> _**AN:** Heh. Hope I'm not disappointing anybody too terribly seriously!_
> 
> _minor rant:_
> 
> _MAN, it's **c-c-c-co-o-o-ol-l-ld-d-d** here::shivering convulsively while looking out the window at 30+ mph arctic winds, trying to ignore the _ negative _single-digit readout on the outside thermometer-or thinking about how much lower the wind-chill makes the effective temperature:: They just HAD to have an announcement on 'global warming'...! Whenever they talk about it, we get record_ **lows!** _Just think-a mere thirty years ago, scientists were_ **just** _as absolutely and 'unanimously' convinced that the world was coming up on another Ice Age! Check out NewsWeek articles from 1975, for instance. ::rolls eyes briefly heavenwards for patience:: Half the time they can't accurately figure out next week!_
> 
> _/minor rant >=P'''_


	4. Neko no Yume Cat of Dreams Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**Disclaimer:** I own neither Natsuki Takaya's 'Fruits Basket' nor Matsuri Akino's 'Petshop of Horrors'._
> 
> _Enjoy!_

### Chapter 4

Yuki started when he suddenly felt a presence at his side. He turned to see a tall, slender man-or was it a woman? He found he couldn't be sure with this androgynous figure-with short black hair in a type of pageboy cut standing right beside him, smiling enigmatically. This stranger had one eye of liquid gold, and one of smoky amethyst; with the gold mostly hidden by hair. The person wore a robe of fine crimson silk with elaborate embroidery in the form of red and gold dragons dancing across the chest and down one arm, wrapping about to the back almost in an embrace of the wearer. The slits up both sides showed black silk pants underneath, gathered at the ankles above delicate black slippers with more gold and red embroidery. Those inscrutable, two-colored eyes bored into Yuki's with a wisdom far beyond the stranger's youthful appearance.

"Good evening. I was wondering if you could help me...I seem to have misplaced my cat. I believe she's somewhere around here, and I would like to find her before evening."

Something in the soft, melodious voice with its exceedingly polite tone set Yuki's neck-hairs at attention; and caused a slithering unease to crawl about just beneath his skin. The Rat's spirit seemed to sit up within him to take rather intense notice of this stranger. Stifling an inexplicable urge to back away, considering this person seemed much too delicate to pose any sort of physical threat, Yuki drew breath and asked, "What kind of cat did you lose? If you'd like, I can ask if someone inside has found one recently..."

Thoughts of Yume belatedly tumbled through Yuki's mind. Where _had_ she come from? This stranger...was he, or she, somehow connected to Kyo's human-shaped cat? The aura of mystery about this person matched Yume's rather well. A trickle of even greater unease drizzled through his veins, as he wondered if this stranger would try to take Yume away from Kyo. He squelched the feeling, uncomfortable still with the mere thought of feeling concern for the stu-er...for the _cat._ He could barely hold to his own recent decision to stop calling his cousin names, at least within his own thoughts!

The stranger smiled softly, a humorous twinkle coming into the two-colored eyes as he-she?-clasped hands beneath a smooth, beardless chin, all but projecting 'cuteness' strong as sunlight. Yuki fought an urge to squint against the unexpected onslaught. "Oh, yes, that would be wonderful! She's a long-haired black cat; somewhat like a Persian, but without the shortened muzzle. She answers to the name Yume..."

Yuki's breath stopped in his throat as the world seemed to contract and freeze about him. He stared into those oddly intent and _knowing_ two-colored eyes like a deer frozen by fast-approaching headlights. He desperately wanted to deny any knowledge of Yume-but the Rat's spirit within adamantly refused to let him lie; not to _this one_. This stranger drew a scrabbling, desperate _reaching_ from the spirit within him that Yuki had never felt from it before.

It seemed to _know_ this person. That thought scared Yuki nearly as much as Akito did.

"I-I..." Yuki swallowed, trying to gather his scattered wits. Seeing the struggle in his eyes, the stranger cocked his/her head to the side in curiosity.

"I take it you do know her. Has she asked you to take care of her, by any chance? Though...I wouldn't think _you_ to be her type..."

All Yuki could see was gold and amethyst, his world shrunken to those two-colored eyes. There was a peculiar sort of _pulling_ at his thoughts, making him picture Kyo and Yume together as they usually were to be found.

The stranger looked startled, drawing a quick breath and placing one hand flat on his/her chest in a graceful motion, expression going slightly chagrined. "Oh, my, how rude of me-I haven't even properly introduced myself yet!" Another enigmatic smile graced those beautiful features as Yuki almost fearfully watched the elegant bow of introduction. "I am Count D, proprietor of my grandfather's newest Pet Shop, downtown. I'm pleased to meet you, Yuki Sohma, bearer of the spirit of the Rat from the story of the Chinese Zodiac."

All the blood drained from Yuki's face and the still-contracted world went brassy about him as the stranger-he guessed it was a man after all, by the name-spoke not only his name; but of his curse. Shivering with fear, ice-water running through his veins as the Rat's spirit scrabbled even more fiercely within his soul, Yuki moved in the only way his otherwise frozen body would allow-he backed a step away, completely unable to return the courteous greeting. Somehow, he knew it would do no good to run from this Count D-if he was even _human._ Yuki suddenly had doubts of that.

The Count's eyes flicked over towards the gate then back to Yuki. The soft, amicable expression on his face didn't put Yuki at ease in the slightest, any more than the quiet, soothing tone to his voice-the kind of voice you'd use with a skittish animal you were trying not to scare. "I would like to see the one Yume has chosen, if you would be so good as to show me where they are. I must be certain that she will be treated properly; she _is_ a Princess, after all." Head cocked once more, smiling cutely, Count D extended one graceful, effeminate hand towards the gate, indicating that Yuki should lead the way. His two-colored eyes twinkled with amusement, and something else that Yuki couldn't quite place.

The Rat's spirit would not allow Yuki to refuse. It eagerly prodded at him to take the Count wherever he should wish to go. Walking stiffly, terror thrumming through his veins as he discovered just how strong the Rat's spirit could _be_ when it wished to compel him, Yuki led the Count towards the gate into the Sohma Main Estate.

The Count's words gave him a strand of hope to cling to; it sounded like Count D was willing to leave Yume with Kyo, so long as she was treated well. Yuki couldn't think how there could be anyone who would treat her better than his Cat-cursed cousin. His main worry was as it had been before Count D came up to him: what was Akito doing? And what would this-whatever Count D was, react to it? Especially if Akito had dared to even try to hurt Yume!

The guard at the gate offered no challenge to Akito's favorite among the Inner Circle, as the twelve Zodiac-cursed Sohmas were known to those of the Clan who had no knowledge of the curse. No one questioned them on their way to Akito's house, or when Yuki led the way inside. For all the attention they paid the stranger with him, Yuki might have been alone. His sense of unease grew with that realization...especially as it occurred to him to wonder if anyone even _saw_ the Count as he tread so lightly after the rat. Yuki didn't dare call out for anyone's help, or even for someone to walk with them; he didn't wish to involve any more of his kin than he had to. Those that didn't know of the curse should be kept safely ignorant; those that did, shouldn't be burdened more than they already were.

Yuki's violet eyes hesitated on the door to Hatori's house as he led Count D by, but his steps didn't falter. The Dragon-cursed doctor might not even be there; and Yuki had no confidence Hatori could, or would, do anything helpful, anyway. If Akito was involved, all Hatori could be counted on for was to defend the Clan Head-and to follow any orders he was given by Akito, no matter how cruel or senseless.

Yuki's eyes narrowed in remembered anger as he thought of his childhood friends, whose memories of him had been taken at Akito's order. Not simply the memory of Yuki's inadvertent transformation; but _all_ memories of their ever having known him in the first place. No; he hadn't forgiven Hatori, and had refused to trust the dragon since that time. Hatori wouldn't ever be of any help to Yuki, let alone to the outcast Kyo. Hatori hadn't even defied Akito enough to help _himself,_ when he was ordered to take away the memories of his own fiancée...

A distinctly feline yowl of rage erupting from the direction of Akito's audience room startled Yuki from his thoughts, immediately drawing the Count's attention. Count D frowned slightly, unidentifiable dark thoughts swirling for a brief moment in his two-colored eyes before diving below the surface. He started walking swiftly, purposefully down the empty hall towards the source of the distinctly _angry_ sound. Yuki belatedly realized it must have been Yume, as the feline cry had somehow seemed female. Cold sweat broke out across his brow and he hurried after of his own will, as worry for what might be happening to Kyo rose in him.

He never thought to worry for _Akito;_ even when a familiar, quickly building _pressure,_ just on the edge of pain, that had become almost noticeable the closer they came-suddenly...stopped.

Bursting through the door to Akito's audience chamber right behind the Count, Yuki was astonished to see Yume, in her human form, long black hair billowing about her seemingly with a life of its own as she snarled and hissed furiously down at a figure sprawled on the floor at her feet. Her raised arms and slight crouch showed her readiness to strike again; her fingers were hooked, shockingly long claws protruding from the tips. A thick, red liquid covered her fingers and was splattered halfway up her arms, with droplets falling to splatter on the wooden floor; sending a coppery tang into the air to tickle at Yuki's nose and raise what few hairs weren't already standing straight out from his skin in his fright.

The Rat's spirit quailed, suddenly dragging _back,_ _away-away-away_ from that sprawled figure...the source of the coppery scent. The source of so much of Yuki's own pain-

Eyes wide in sudden, unnamed terror, shaking and breathing heavily with it, Yuki's eyes darted about the room until they settled on a second downed figure over near a wall, this one struggling to get to its knees. Even the shadows of the normally dark room couldn't entirely hide that bright orange hair. Casting one more terrified glance at the Count who was calmly approaching the enraged Yume, who appeared ready to rip Akito's heart out at any slightest provocation, Yuki directed his numb-feeling legs to take him to his cousin's side. It never occurred to him to wonder if Akito had been killed; deep inside, he instinctively knew that his 'god's death would be unquestionable; something he would have felt, even as all the Zodiac-cursed Sohmas felt Akito's horrible tempers so clearly when they were near the Clan Head.

Blood trickled from the wobbly cat's temple, where the skin had split from the force of a blow-it was quite probable he had at least a mild concussion, judging from his awkward lack of balance. A thin dribble of red from Kyo's mouth came from an obviously split lip. Yuki guessed that Akito had probably first slapped the cat hard in the face; then belted him in the side of the head with that unexpected, inexplicable strength the thin and frail-seeming Clan Head could use on them.

The rat knelt by the wavering cat, quickly wrapping an arm about Kyo's shoulders to keep him upright as the cat wobbled more and nearly went sprawling. An almost electrical shock traveled up Yuki's arm to explode softly behind his eyes, nearly causing him to jerk away; except he'd been half expecting it. It would take more than a simple concussion to keep Kyo down like he was; he'd had worse in their fights, many times. Yuki could see him fighting the too-familiar effects of Akito's anger through the link the curse forced between the Zodiac-cursed and their 'god'. The cat's mind was probably still 'ringing' with it, even minutes after the force of it ended; and another Zodiac-cursed would naturally feel a kind of 'echo'.

Akito must have been particularly furious with the cat, from the fireworks Yuki was vicariously seeing. He wondered if Kyo was even feeling anything from the physical blows, yet. It was a small miracle he was even conscious!

Yuki glanced once and away from Yume, understanding the exact cause of her current fury. Akito had- _hurt_ -Kyo; so she hurt Akito. It would seem a perfectly sensible response, to her-who would not have to feel the repercussions directly through the curse. Fighting against Akito only mired one of the Zodiac-cursed more deeply in the curse's influence. If Yume had angered Akito enough, Kyo might be in danger of losing his very mind the next time he fought against the force of their 'god's rage.

The rat wasn't fool enough to hope Kyo could possibly avoid angering Akito. It just wasn't in the cat's nature to submit, to anyone. It was one of the things Yuki admired most about him; that indomitable will. Yuki knew very well that he, himself would crumple like cheesecloth under an anvil at Akito's merest whisper of annoyance.

"Yume-hime...that's quite enough, please."

Count D's calm voice carried a sense of _power_ that jerked Yuki's attention fully to him. The Count was standing primly over Akito, folded arms tucked into the sleeves of his crimson robe, facing the angry cat-turned-girl; completely unruffled by her bloody appearance. He glanced down once at the injured Clan Head, two-colored eyes going artic-cold for the briefest of moments before he gazed back up at her with a once more serene expression.

Yume stared at him, her rage gradually dying down to mere disappointment. She slowly bowed her head; in agreement, and greeting-never submission. "Count. I was wondering when you would come for me." Her eyes lingered ferally on the unconscious Akito.

He smiled that enigmatic smile, two-colored eyes giving nothing away of his true emotions. "Are you ready to come home yet, Yume-hime?"

Obsidian eyes snapped to the Count's face, anger and defiance strong in them. She looked over to Kyo, where Yuki was slowly, carefully trying to help him to his feet. So far he'd only managed to keep his cousin upright on his knees. Kyo seemed surprisingly heavy; Yuki didn't remember ever having this much trouble when throwing his cousin about in their fights... Then Yume stared in silence at the Count.

Count D slowly nodded, sadness touching his face. "I...see. So, you have chosen."

She nodded, once and sharply; then waited expectantly, never blinking. Count D sighed in resignation, then brought his hands out of his sleeves and turned to Kyo and Yuki, ignoring the unconscious Akito to walk gracefully over to them. He bent down enough to be eye-to-eye with Kyo, hands braced on his knees.

Staring into the Cat-cursed boy's dilated, wandering eyes, the Count sighed again as Kyo tried to focus on him. Yuki, beginning to be a bit worried, did his best to stabilize the wobbly cat, reaching one hand over to almost gently brace his chin and aim his face at the Count. It seemed Kyo was having difficulty keeping his neck stiff enough to support his head. The way those annoying lights were still going off behind Yuki's own eyes, he once again thought it rather a wonder the cat was conscious at all-never mind the concussion!

When it seemed he had as much of Kyo's attention as the boy could focus, the Count's smile came back-this time, more gentle than mysterious. "Hello, Kyo Sohma; bearer of the spirit of the Cat from the story of the Chinese Zodiac. I am Count D."

 _That_ registered with Kyo. Yuki felt the cat's shoulders stiffen under his arm as he started, dilated red eyes trying desperately to focus properly on this stranger who knew of his curse.

"It's-all right, I think," Yuki whispered in Kyo's ear. "He's-a friend of Yume's." Violet eyes stayed fixed on the Count as the rat tried to reassure his groggy cousin, even though he himself was in rather desperate need of assurance.

"Yume-hime tells me she has chosen you to be her Master. I can see that you are uniquely qualified to understand her needs..." The amethyst eye and the gold crinkled with amusement as the Count's smile deepened for a moment. "The contract that exists between you and Yume-hime is unwritten...as it always is with her." He sighed softly once more in mixed fondness and vexation, glancing over at the now-calm human-shaped cat for a brief moment. "As you have been caring properly for her for some time now, I will not insist on a written contract. Not that she'd allow it, anyway..." That last was mumbled too softly for normal human ears, as Count D briefly rolled his eyes heavenwards; Kyo and Yuki both just barely made it out with their curse-enhanced hearing.

Shaking his head slightly, Count D gave Kyo a sober look, holding his unblinking gaze. "Kyo-kun. Certain things must change, if Yume-hime is to continue to stay with you. I do know quite a bit about your family's curse..." The two-colored eyes darkened, knowledge and something _else_ coming to the fore. Kyo had frozen so still, he might be made of stone. He was helpless to break that two-colored gaze as Count D went on in a voice that resonated with a power that gripped their curse animals in thrall within their souls. "The foolishness of generations must end. I _will not_ tolerate Yume-hime being hurt; not even indirectly, through you. _That One_ -" Both boys twitched at the sudden, venomous emphasis put on those two words, as all three glanced briefly towards Akito, "-shall have no control over you, from this day on. If he tries to harm you...I will allow Yume-hime to do as she wishes. If her efforts should fail to be enough, then _I_ will deal with him."

The cold expression that came over the Count's face froze Kyo and Yuki all the way to the marrow of their bones. The sense of _Power_ that suddenly rolled off of him to bathe them in its strength calmed the restless animal spirits within them, even as it burned away any and all traces of their link to Akito. The odd, almost queasy emptiness where that link had been for all of their lives left Yuki and Kyo upright only because they were propped against each other. Yuki couldn't help but cling to his supposed nemesis as the world- _wavered_ about him, for a moment. Kyo's hands had come up to rather weakly grip at his cousin's arm; clinging back with equal disorientation.

"...Are you...a god...?"

Kyo's hoarse, whisper-soft question made Yuki flinch, even as his wilting neck-hairs stood straight out once more. Both boys stared wide-eyed and frightened at Count D, hanging on his answer.

The coldness disappeared as if it had never been, replaced by a beaming smile and an oddly annoying, twittering laugh like birdsong. Count D appeared greatly amused by the question. "Oh, you _silly_ boy! _Such_ a thing to ask...!" One delicate, graceful hand rose to cover his mouth as the Count chortled softly. He stood straight and turned back to Yume, walking over to speak quietly with her for a moment.

Yuki noticed the Count had not answered Kyo's question. He paled even further, swallowing heavily as he interpreted that to mean _yes,_ Count D was some sort of god. Much more of one than Akito, who was merely a human born under a curse. By the way Kyo was shivering, red eyes riveted to the Count, Yuki decided his cousin thought the same.

The rat's eyes were drawn unwillingly to Akito, sprawled so still there on the floor. Looking closely, Yuki could make out the long rents in the front of the Clan Head's half-open robe, and the bright red marring the skin of his chest as it slowly rose and fell with his shallow breaths. The bloodstain didn't seem to be growing; so he probably wasn't bleeding to death where he lay. Yuki swallowed a lump of pure fear and started trying to convince himself that he really _should_ go over there, and check on Akito. He didn't succeed; his body wouldn't move any closer to Count D on just his own, weak will.

The cat was wavering more and more under his supporting arm, and a look at Kyo's face with its quickly glazing red eyes told him that his cousin was going to be unconscious soon. With a concussion, that wasn't a good thing; Yuki decided with relief that the cat needed him more than Akito did. He began talking, softly, pulling Kyo's face around by the chin to look into those glazing red eyes; trying to keep his annoying cousin talking and awake. Yuki wasn't even certain of what he was saying to the cat; the words flowed out how they willed. He just knew he had to keep Kyo conscious. It didn't seem like Kyo was all that able to understand him at the moment, anyway; the red of his eyes had been all but swallowed by black pupil, and he just couldn't seem to focus on anything around him.

Yume was suddenly at Yuki's shoulder, peering in concern at Kyo. The rat started from his efforts to keep Kyo awake, looking about for Count D; but the-god-had disappeared. Feeling like he'd never stop shivering, Yuki resolutely pushed his worries about the Count away.

"Yume-I need to go get Hatori, for Kyo; and...and for Akito."

The girl nodded, serious obsidian eyes boring into the rat's for a moment. Then she settled herself to kneel on Kyo's other side, readily slipping her arm about his shoulders even as Yuki withdrew his. The rat rose unsteadily to his feet, unable to resist the urge to glance frequently about himself into the room's overwhelming shadows, and went off in search of the Dragon-cursed doctor. He wasn't certain just what he was going to tell Hatori; maybe he'd say nothing at all, other than that Akito and Kyo were in need of his services. Unfortunately, Hatori would likely assume that Kyo had injured Akito; but Yuki would deal with that when and if it happened. After all, Hatori knew first-hand just how difficult it was for one of them to merely talk back to Akito, much less physically hurt him.

He might assume Yume had done it, if she looked like a cat to his eyes. Which was the truth, after all...but there was no way Yuki would be a party to having Yume punished for defending Kyo! Especially as she seemed to have her own guardian deity. Yuki did not want Count D to become... _annoyed_...with him; or even Hatori, for all he wasn't all that fond of his older cousin and fellow Zodiac-cursed. It wasn't really Hatori's fault that the dragon wasn't able to stand up to Akito any better than any of the rest of them, after all. And...reluctant memories played before Yuki's eyes; Hatori _had_ managed to hold Akito back at least a time or two, in Yuki's defense.

There was no telling what the Count could _do_ to them; maybe he could make their curse even more horrible than it was-he might lock them in their animal forms permanently; or maybe give them the minds of those animals-! Who knew how powerful the Count really was?

Yuki all but dragged a surprised and quickly worried Hatori back to Akito's audience room. The doctor had been reluctant at first, when all Yuki told him was that Kyo needed his skills; he'd assumed the boys had merely had another of their chronic fights, and Yuki had perhaps gone a bit farther in defeating his cousin than he'd meant. Adding that _Akito_ was injured as well had gotten Hatori's sudden, complete attention. Yuki had refused to elaborate, simply insisting the doctor hurry. It was the muted terror in the boy's eyes had finally stifled his questions and hurried him along. Yuki wasn't one to panic, as a rule.

Hatori certainly didn't expect to find an unconscious Clan Head, with what looked like scratches from the largest claws Hatori could never have imagined on his chest-and a thoroughly concussed Kyo, with two loose teeth, a split lip, and some minor friction burns on his shoulder...and he _certainly_ didn't expect to see a strange girl in the room with his cursed patients. A girl Yuki seemed to know and easily accept, as he thanked her politely for waiting. A girl who was managing to hold the Cat-cursed boy upright by both her arms wrapped firmly about him-

_-without triggering his curse._

Naturally, Hatori spent a couple moments staring dumbfounded at this tableau. Yuki's snapping his name with anger in his tone finally broke the dragon out of the spell he seemed to be under, causing him to shake his head and jerk his attention to the work at hand.

The doctor had attended to his foremost duty first, heading straight for Akito. Yuki had glared at him when he looked up from those long, barely scabbed-over wounds to Kyo; the rat had stepped firmly between the doctor's shocked gaze and the cat, face thunderous-and clearly ready to defend his so-hated cousin, as he told the doctor flat out that Kyo didn't do it. Hatori had blinked, shock clear on his normally frozen expression for a moment before he turned back to finish cleaning and bandaging Akito's chest. He wasn't certain he really wanted to know what had happened...especially as it wasn't raining out, so removing Kyo's bracelet wouldn't have transformed the boy into-that _other_ form. The one with the huge claws; that could so easily do what had been done to Akito's chest.

But-it _wasn't raining._

Yuki didn't let the dragon pick Akito up to carry him off to his futon when he was done treating the Clan Head; the rat insisted the doctor check on Kyo first, physically getting in his way-actually grabbing Hatori's wrist while glaring into the doctor's good gray-green eye. Seeing the unusual determination in the rat's expression, the dragon sighed and relented, knowing Akito would be all right for at least the few minutes Kyo would need.

Hatori approached the strange girl and Kyo with more than a bit of trepidation, Yuki impatiently urging him on. The rat finally let out an exasperated, half-growl of a breath, and introduced Yume to him.

Hatori stared at Yuki, one eyebrow raised. "...Yume." His eye twitched, slightly, just once. He'd been to Shigure's house once recently, and seen the long-haired black cat now seeming to be permanently living there. "Kyo's...new...cat."

Yuki nodded solemnly, never breaking eye contact. "Yes."

Hatori blinked, feeling like his mind was being wrapped in numbing cotton. It would certainly explain why Kyo wasn't transforming... He decided after a couple moments of thought that the circumstances could be sorted out later-he had a patient to attend to, and then Akito to get settled into bed. He pushed his confusion from his mind and concentrated on finding the extent of Kyo's injuries.

The loosened teeth would stay or fall out on their own; there was nothing to be done about them just yet, other than Kyo's avoiding eating food that was too hard, or tough to chew. The friction burns were cleaned and dressed with proper ointment and bandaging, and another strip of bandage was wrapped about the boy's head to hold a medicated pad over the still sluggishly bleeding contusion to his temple. Hatori didn't think the cat's skull was cracked, but made a note to himself to get an X-ray of the area first thing in the morning in case of a hairline fracture. The split lip required two stitches; Yuki held the pen-light for him to see by. All in all, Kyo had gotten off quite lightly, considering some of the injuries Hatori had treated him for through the years. Several of his past fights with Yuki had left him worse off. The concussion was really the only worrisome thing.

Kyo did his best to stay conscious through it all, though the effort it took was obvious. He'd suffered at least some memory loss, that might or might not return; he couldn't quite seem to remember just how he'd gotten injured...or even how he'd come to be at the Main House. He remembered that he was scheduled to come-which was news to Hatori; the boy just couldn't remember the trip, or what had happened once he got there. The boy also seemed rather-unstable, emotionally; actual tears ran from his tightly closed eyes at one point, as the girl Yuki claimed was Kyo's cat hugged him tightly to her. His eyes were quite dilated, but he otherwise seemed able to see all right, if still in multiples; and his balance was off, but not greatly so. His breathing seemed fine.

Hatori decided it wasn't the worst concussion his tempestuous young cousin had ever suffered; which absently muttered comment drew a startled look from Yuki, and a soft, decidedly feline hiss from Yume. He prescribed bed-rest for a week, figuring Kyo _might_ be kept down for at least the first day, with Yuki-and Yume, apparently-trying their best to restrain him. He knew Shigure would be no help whatsoever; the dog would likely incite Kyo to be on his feet in mere hours, with his irritating behavior.

The dragon never did get a satisfactory explanation of Yume; none of the family did. No one not of the family was ever privileged to even suspect Kyo's pet was anything but an ordinary-well, extraordinary-cat. Neither Kyo nor Yuki would ever explain the black-haired young woman who sometimes showed up in place of the long-haired black cat; they were left to form their own conclusions. Not many of the family saw her; and never off Sohma property. Kyo, and sometimes Yuki, were the only ones ever to see Yume as human anywhere but on Sohma property.

Shigure was only allowed to see her as human when Yume felt he needed chastising-which was at least once a day, much to the disgust of her and the boys. The dog quickly learned a great deal of respect her too-sharp claws and blinding speed in using them. The boys weren't certain which was worse-Shigure's enjoyment of teasing Yume _just_ to the point of ruined clothing, or Yume's satisfaction at indecently shredding the perverted writer's robe. Yuki and Kyo quickly and wordlessly agreed on a standard routine-whichever was closest would whip a hand up over Tohru's innocent eyes, while the other quickly booted the pervert from the room.

Hatori saw a human Yume a few times, when he came to check on Kyo or Yuki-who were getting along _remarkably_ well. The first time occurred as he was leaving after treating Yuki for a chill. The strange girl from Akito's audience room was standing partly in the shadows off to his side as he was getting ready to leave, her black-as-night hair and clothing seeming part of the dark. His eye had been caught by her too-pale face that seemed to float disembodied in the blackness.

She'd held his eyes for a moment, unblinking; then given him a nod of acknowledgement. After that she'd seemed to disappear, swallowed by the shadows, leaving a startled and confused dragon to stare after her. He'd not noticed the long-haired black cat as she sauntered casually out from behind the couch and off into the depths of the house.

Amazingly enough, Ayame was never told by Hatori or Shigure about Kyo's human-seeming cat; but the attention he showered on her, overwhelming as it could be, managed to somehow appeal to her. On a limited basis, of course. He was gifted with seeing a human Yume exactly _once;_ she smiled and draped both arms about his neck, touching noses with him in a feline 'kiss'. She then grabbed his hands and spun the stunned snake through a couple of energetic dance twirls before seemingly disappearing with a low, throaty laugh. The snake never thought to look downwards, or he'd have seen the black cat strutting haughtily away. Ayame never mentioned the episode, though he did walk around in something of a daze for weeks afterwards. He never connected the strange girl with the black-haired cat with the too-knowing eyes, though.

When a smirking Kyo offered to Yume that he could let Ayame 'cat-sit' while he went on a class trip, he only narrowly escaped multiple perforations by twenty _extremely_ sharp feline claws. And not just because he'd implied he would try to leave her behind. Too much Ayame is just-too much!

A distinctly Black Hatsuharu found himself, in his anger at a self-perceived insult of Kyo's towards 'his precious' Yuki, nose-to-nose with a snarlingly furious young woman with _quite_ respectably long and undeniably sharp **claws** gracing her fingertips. The sudden, unmistakable threat of being thoroughly shredded into bovine confetti instantly quelled his raging emotions, dumping his psyche unceremoniously into White mode. Thus a much calmer Hatsuharu found himself inexplicably staring into the angriest, most bloodthirsty seeming pair of obsidian eyes his mind's eye had never imagined in his whole, too-short _life._

Black Haru never did come out to 'play' at Shigure's house, after that.

Hiro never saw a human Yume. In his opinion, he was _entirely_ too well-acquainted with Kyo's hairy little Cuisinart, who took every opportunity to soundly chastise the Ram-cursed boy's habitual sardonic commentary with those _sharp_ little claws of hers. The ram usually left Shigure's house with a minimum of four brand-new Band-Aids somewhere on his person-the placement depending on just how annoying he'd been. The first time, the poor ram couldn't sit comfortably for a week. Hiro eventually learned to watch his mouth-at least around Kyo, as Yume could be reliably counted on to turn up if Kyo was anywhere in the vicinity.

Kisa, sweet as Tohru and rather feline in nature herself thanks to the curse of the Tiger's spirit, saw a human Yume nearly every time she visited. The two never seemed to need words to communicate; body language and eye contact seemed to convey everything they needed to say to each other. It was rather disconcerting to everyone else but Kyo, who, as the Cat-cursed, had no trouble understanding the two girls. The quiet little tiger rarely saw the black-haired cat, but still was easily able to make the connection as to who Kyo's mysterious new protector was. She did try to tell Hiro to watch what he said...she sighed and shook her head with mild exasperation every time he found himself scratched, trying to stifle her giggles.

Momiji only knew that Kyo's new pet did not seem to like him...and her unblinking feline gaze drove the Rabbit's spirit within him to distraction with the conviction that she was going to _eat_ him. He usually tried to keep Tohru between him and Yume; or when Tohru wasn't available, he'd use Yuki as his 'shield'. He tried keeping Kyo between him and the intimidating little predator only once. Having his Cat-cursed cousin literally fall over laughing at him proved to his rattled nerves that Kyo was no protection whatsoever. Poor Momiji had no other way of knowing Yume merely thought him amusing, not edible. He _did_ try to explain her game to the boy, but the Rabbit's spirit was having none of it. So whenever Kyo felt the urge to tease with his younger cousin in a big-brotherly manner as he always did with Momiji, he had to make certain Yume stayed out of the room so she didn't give the rabbit a heart attack.

Ritsu, Rin, and Kureno didn't ever come to Shigure's house, at least not while Kyo and Yume were also there. These three didn't even hear stories about the human-cat; those that knew about her refused to talk about Yume to anyone they didn't know for a fact had seen her as human, fearing they'd be declared insane, even by their fellow Zodiac-cursed kin.

Kagura received some _nasty_ scratches from the 'vicious little monster' every single time she man-handled Kyo. If the Boar-cursed girl gave Kyo a black eye, her cheek would sport a red-tinged bandage for a couple of weeks. A serious sprain to the Cat-cursed boy garnered a minimum of ten stitches for the Boar-cursed girl. Every time Kagura swung Kyo around like a rag doll, she was forced to replace pretty much the entire outfit she wore that day-it would be guaranteed irreparable.

Even the too-stubborn Kagura eventually got the message, and after a while Kyo no longer flew into an immediate panic at the mere thought of her visiting. Before long, the two were actually able to hold an entire conversation without either's temper blowing up. Yume being planted firmly in Kyo's lap during discussions helped immensely. In due time, their communication resulted in a true friendship between them...and Kagura's finally realizing that her chosen fiancé maybe, just _maybe_ , wasn't the one for her after all. He didn't like the same things she did; didn't think the same way...and didn't feel the same way for her as she'd tried so hard to feel about him. With her ferocious over-reactions forcibly controlled by Yume's necessarily rough 'training', Kagura was able to consciously see what everyone else already knew-it wasn't her that Kyo had finally fallen for...and Kagura didn't really love Kyo, not in that way. She'd been forcing herself as much as him.

Kyo's regular new-moon visits to the Main House stopped. He went one time, the first new moon after 'the incident', only to be turned away at the front gate; Akito "didn't wish to sully himself with the cat's presence." His brand-new terror of the black-haired 'demoness' who now guarded Kyo from harm went tactfully unmentioned by anyone. Akito only saw Yume, in any form, one more time...on the same day that Yuki received the greatest shock of his life.

-.-.-.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**AN:** g One more chapter for wrap up! I missed being under 10,000 words, but at least it'll be under 25,000... ::sigh:: If I could just get rid of this _ **un-men-tion-a-ble** _sinus infection that popped up in the middle of the cold the kids on the my bus gave me last week, I'd be a happier camper. Bleaahh!_


	5. Neko no Yume Cat of Dreams Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**Disclaimer:** I own neither Natsuki Takaya's 'Fruits Basket' nor Matsuri Akino's 'Petshop of Horrors'._
> 
> _Enjoy!_

### Epilogue

Yuki's jaw almost literally hit the ground as he gaped at his Cat-cursed cousin, his eyes bugging out as he watched Kyo walk up to the podium with that unconscious feline grace of his; Yume flirting her streaming black tail as she strolled elegantly along beside him. Everyone else from their class was also gaping, if not to the same extent as their so-called 'Prince'. Even Tohru was looking stunned, though her expression was tempered with a great deal of pleased excitement on Kyo's behalf.

Obsidian feline eyes met thunderstruck violet in a look of undisguised satisfaction as Kyo's most constant companion almost strutted by. The black cat blinked and broke her gaze after a moment, with a little sniff and a toss of her head.

Kyo's speech was short and simple, generating a great deal of loud applause-and Yuki didn't catch a word of it. His brain was frozen with incredulity. He simply could not believe that the idiot cat-the brash, loud, rude, brazen; foul-mouthed; fiery-tempered _cat-_

-had _beaten_ him.

And not in martial arts; _oh,_ no. There hadn't been a single blow thrown in _this_ fight; Yuki hadn't even realized they were competing at this!

Kyo had beaten him... _at school work._ Kyo Sohma had graduated at the top of their _entire_ graduating year. The cat had finally beaten the rat-in Yuki's own area of expertise...with his _brain!_

Yuki would later have a very faint and muddled recollection of Kyo walking up to him with a relatively mild smirk on his Sohma-handsome face, crimson eyes glinting with amusement even as a shadow darkened his expression when he looked over Yuki's shoulder. The cat was as tense as Yuki had ever seen him. The rat was unable to find his voice, gaping like a fish out of water.

The surfacing memory of overhearing Kyo skillfully debating the human condition with Yume all those months ago made his wildly swirling and bubbling thoughts pause, allowing him enough presence of mind to close his jaw. Violet eyes stared sharply into nearly laughing red for a moment as Yuki realized just how many hints he'd willfully ignored, over the years; hints overshadowed by his annoyance at Kyo's constantly attacking him, both physically and verbally. All that time, he'd been blind to anything but their enmity...and when they'd started tentatively redefining their relationship, Yuki hadn't bothered to pay that close attention towards finding out much about Kyo. He'd focused more on 'dealing with him'.

The sudden sense of pure, cold _menace_ from behind raised Yuki's hackles, causing him to nervously step aside and turn. He paled, mouth going bone-dry and breath catching in his throat when he found Akito standing not ten feet behind him; giving Kyo a glare that was full of such black hatred, it was a wonder the cat didn't shrivel up and disappear on the spot. Yuki knew _he_ certainly wanted to, and that look wasn't even directed at him! Akito definitely didn't need the force of the curse to terrify. Everyone else nearby edged away, giving the Sohmas and Tohru a good bit of privacy. Faces turned away towards the continuing ceremony, curiosity quelled by shivering fear of this slender, menacing figure in black.

Jerking his eyes away from Akito, Yuki saw that a proud Kyo was simply standing there, meeting the Clan Head's eyes without blinking, his face grimly determined. If Akito's venomous glare affected him, the orange-haired young man didn't let it show other than by the hands fisted at his sides, and looking understandably tense as a strung bow. Yume was sitting calmly at his feet, long, bushy tail wrapped primly about her paws, black eyes intensely watchful. If Akito dared try anything, he would be shredded.

Yuki wondered briefly if Akito saw her as a cat, or the black-haired human girl who had shown she'd have no qualms at all about injuring him to protect her chosen Master.

When Kyo spoke, his voice was low and rough, not carrying to the determinedly not-curious ears all about; almost a hiss. "So. I beat your precious rat. You gonna keep your word, now?"

Yuki glanced back towards Akito, nervous about the Clan Head's reaction. He hadn't thought Kyo would still feel that old bet hovering over his head. Between Yume and Count D, there wasn't much Akito should be able _do_ to Kyo, other than to make it difficult for the cat to make his own way in the world...but then again, Akito wasn't known for his sanity. He might still try something, even if it ended up badly for the Clan Head.

It also wasn't certain that Akito would accept this redefinition of the bet. Yuki didn't know the exact wording; Kyo had never told him when Yuki finally found out about it, and the rat hadn't pressed since, thinking it no longer mattered. When he and Kyo spoke, it had been of other matters entirely, as they tentatively felt out the dimensions of their new almost-friendship. They were each careful to keep away from too-touchy subjects-which mainly meant anything Family-related...

Though...if Kyo had been working to beat Yuki at _school work,_ all along-and he'd have had to have been working towards this day of graduation for several years, at the very least!- _why,_ then, had he gone through the trouble of all that constant physical fighting, through the years? He'd admitted on that momentous day when Yuki discovered what Yume was, that he wasn't winning for fear of being instantly locked up; and that he'd never consciously realized that was why he couldn't seem to win their fights, until Yume forced him to really think about it. But-even if Kyo hadn't realized he was losing purposefully, why fight with Yuki at all, when he apparently wanted to beat the rat in this manner? Violet-gray eyes snapped back to his so-irritating cousin, as multiplying suspicions only bred more confusion.

The rat was distracted from his nervously circling thoughts when Akito let out a soft sound quite like a growl. The Clan Head's black eyes displayed all the malignant hatred in his soul as he tried to glare Kyo into submission through pure will-power. His teeth were painfully clenched, tendons standing out clearly all along his jaw and down his neck and arms. Count D's breaking of Kyo's direct link to their 'god' was probably the only reason the cat was still standing, let alone glaring back at Akito. It was certainly the only reason that Yuki wasn't puddled on the ground in terror!

Yuki backed another step away, fear quieting his thoughts as he prayed Akito wouldn't turn to him. Old habits died hard; unquestioning fear and obedience to his 'god' had been drilled bone-deep into the rat's reflexes from a very young age. Besides...Yume's and Count D's protection didn't likely extend to the rat, even if the god had been kind enough to also break his link to Akito. He wouldn't risk depending on it for himself.

" _You...!"_ Akito's voice dripped menace. Kyo didn't flinch, though Yuki did. The Clan Head's black eyes drifted down to the still and silent feline at Kyo's feet, his voice dropping an octave with impotent fury. _"You..."_

Red eyes narrowed as Kyo gritted his teeth, drawing Akito's attention back to him by speaking. "Yeah. _Me._ And her. You gonna keep your word, and not try to lock me up? Or are you really the honorless bastard everybody knows you to be?"

A shaking Yuki backed yet another step away as the apparently insane cat purposely provoked a wild-eyed Akito, who was starting to shake with raw fury. Teeth bared and face contorted by rage, it looked like Akito was all but ready to start frothing at the mouth. A vein in his temple was visibly throbbing.

Hatori, who'd been standing quietly behind the Clan Head weathering the emotions pounding into him through his still-intact link to his 'god', paled and started to raise one hand from his side before catching himself. Gray-green eyes sought out Shigure, who was riveted by the confrontation. The two exchanged a speaking look, then nodded slightly to each other, the dog moving quietly to stand by the dragon, the link-born strain showing in his stiff bearing. If Akito needed restraining, they were ready-as was Kazuma, Kyo's foster-father, who'd moved close by, charcoal eyes fixed on the furious Clan Head. Whether the karate master knew exactly what was going on or not, he knew without a doubt that his adopted son was threatened; and his choice of action was very clear. If Hatori and Shigure were unable to overcome their Clan Head's rage enough to hold him back, Kazuma would certainly be capable of physically stopping him, future consequences to himself be damned.

Suddenly Akito threw one slender, frail arm out and away from his body in a quick and violent throw-away motion. His voice was a low and poisonous hiss that carried better than any scream. "Stay out of my sight, you _worthless monstrosity!_ Don't _ever_ let me set eyes on you again!"With that he spun on his heel and stalked off, unnaturally thin frame shaking with rage; radiating more anger than Kyo ever had at his very worst, before Tohru came into their lives. The few people unlucky enough to be in the Sohma Clan Head's path hurriedly scrambled to move, trying to mask their fear even as wide eyes tracked sideways, to be certain of when he was safely gone.

Hatori and Shigure traded an amazed look, before all but scurrying to catch up with their Clan Head to be certain he did nothing rash that might cause harm to others-or to himself. His health was still delicate, his body ill able to accommodate his tempers at the best of times.

Yuki, Tohru and Kyo stared after them, in varying degrees of shock. Yume sniffed and haughtily turned her head from Akito's retreat, the very picture of feline arrogance. She was the only one who knew that Count D had paid Akito a personal visit the day after she clawed him, to be certain the insane Clan Head understood what would happen should he be...unwise...in his dealings with Yume, and Kyo. Everyone around them still left a little open space for privacy; most had undoubtedly heard Akito's parting insult, and wished to give the notoriously hot-tempered Kyo a chance to calm down before coming too close. The strained moment drew out for several minutes, everyone furtively trying to ignore the previous uncomfortable scene. The steady stream of graduates continued one by one up to the podium to receive their diplomas, say their piece, and bound off the stage back to their proudly watching family and friends.

Then Tohru's face lit up in an incandescent smile as she turned to Kyo, clasping her hands under her chin as she looked at him with teary, but happy eyes. "Oh, Kyo-kun-! Does this mean that Akito-sama...he's not...not going to..." Her hopeful voice dropped to a mere whisper as she finished her thought, "...l-lock you up...?"

Kyo's head whipped around and he stared at her, his face going queasy. She very obviously had heard about Akito's plan to lock him up before then; there was no way she'd have been so calm, otherwise. "How they hell did _you_ find out? _When?"_ His fierce whisper was half-strangled by the force of his dismay. Yuki was staring at her in surprise as well, though he was more concerned with Kazuma-sensei's reaction. He didn't think Kyo's Master had known, though he'd probably had his suspicions; grandson of the previous Cat-cursed that he was.

The karate Master's charcoal eyes were fixed on Kyo at Tohru's words, as he kept himself from stepping closer with difficulty. Kazuma knew Kyo would likely run off if he remembered his foster father was close enough, if barely, to overhear this conversation. He anxiously held himself still as a statue as he prayed to all of the gods that Kyo wouldn't notice who was standing behind him until Kazuma had heard what he needed to hear.

Tohru hung her head, face burning with shame, sorry to have hurt Kyo's feelings. She knew he hadn't wanted her to know-hadn't wanted her to worry about him, more than likely. But once she'd found out what was supposed to happen to Kyo right after he graduated, she couldn't _help_ but worry! She'd tried _so_ hard to not let him know she'd found out this secret of his; hoping, praying that he'd tell her on his own...all the while, trying desperately to figure out a way to break the curse, to save him. And now, she'd just blurted out her knowledge-!

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry, Kyo-kun-but-but I-f-figured it out, from-from things I-I heard..." Tohru kept her face down, eyes firmly fixed on her toes. The rest of the words of apology that wanted to pour out tangled in her throat, lodging so firmly that nothing more could escape her lips. She didn't want to admit to him that Akito, himself had told her, more than a year ago. Kyo-kun would only become more concerned at the thought that he hadn't known every time she'd seen the Clan Head, and he'd start to worry more about her. She didn't want him to worry about her; he had enough problems of his own, even without being locked up!

Kyo sighed, letting his chin drop to his chest for a moment as he slumped with an air of defeat. He slowly shook his head as he raised it, staring at Tohru with a sad, yet whimsically amused expression. He tried not to shiver with the release of nervous tension as he wiped at his face with one hand, trying to smooth the stress away. "It's all right, I guess. I-" Red eyes went suspiciously watery for a moment, as he swallowed, hard. "I just...didn't...want you to worry."

The dawning hope in those red eyes showed the moment when Kyo first started to realize, he'd _done it-_ he'd won that damnable bet with Akito. He was free, at least as much as someone under such a powerful curse could ever be free; to have a career...a life-

He was free to _love..._

Tohru peeked hopefully up at his face. Seeing he really wasn't mad at her, she smiled at him, straightening somewhat. Kyo smiled back-his all too rare, shy, _true_ smile; that always seemed to Tohru to be touched with sadness. Now there was a hint of anxiety in it, too-whether because he was afraid she'd be angry with him for not telling her himself, or from wondering at what Akito would think up to do to him now, she couldn't tell. The liquid sheen to those beautiful red eyes also confused her; it-didn't really look to be from sadness...?

Then Yuki finally found his wits, and his voice. A quick glance about showed them to still have a smidgeon of privacy; even Hanajima and Uotani were staying respectfully away, if only because Tohru obviously didn't need their help. He stepped closer to Kyo, glaring straight into his cousin's eyes in spite of Kyo's slightly greater height, keeping his voice low, if intense. _"What_ just happened here?"

Kyo-smirked. Broadly, with a great deal of honest humor in his crimson eyes, and one eyebrow raised in high amusement. "You never saw it coming, did you, you damn rat. Heh! And _you're_ supposed to be the smart one!"

Not even Tohru could mistake the murderous intent in Yuki's eyes as he struggled to keep from pasting a fist _right_ in his oh-so- _annoying_ cousin's nose. The insult didn't bother him; 'damn rat' and 'idiot cat' had become something like eccentric, but almost fond nicknames between them, in the manner of boys who didn't want to admit to having 'mushy feelings'. His breathing was a bit ragged as he forced himself to glance once more at all the potential witnesses about them, before grabbing both his temper and Kyo and dragging the surprised cat by the arm off and around the nearest corner; out of direct sight and hearing.

Tohru "eep"ed and quickly followed the boys even as Yume sauntered unconcernedly after them. The girl was suddenly very worried about bloodshed. Not that it would be all that unusual, but still...they had been doing so much better, recently! She had to at least try to mitigate the damage, such as she could. Hanajima's black eyes followed her with a knowing smile even as the psychic girl place a firm hand on Arisa's arm to keep her from storming after them. The pleased satisfaction in her expression make her Yankee friend pause, then reluctantly let Tohru go, with one more lingering glare after the boys.

As soon as they were out of sight of the crowd, Kyo did something else unexpected. He quite calmly-and _easily_ -freed his arm from Yuki's hold, slipped around the rat, and had him immobilized with one arm pulled up behind his cousin's back and Kyo's arm about his throat-all before a startled Yuki could so much as blink.

Kyo's breath tickled Yuki's ear as he whispered, "You'd think somebody who's _supposed_ to be the smartest of the Zodiac-cursed, would have bothered to learn a little something about cats-what with us being enemies, and all." Yuki strained futilely against Kyo's hold for a moment, chagrin vying with anger in his heart; but he couldn't free himself. Kyo countered every move he tried, every twist and shift and kick-

Yuki stopped fighting Kyo's hold when it started to feel like his arm was going to be dislocated; his vision already graying a bit as his airway was closed off somewhat by Kyo's arm, that was slowly tightening about his throat. This wasn't how their fights went! Yume's words on the day he'd discovered she had a human form came back to him-she'd said the cat could beat the rat any time he chose; that he always _chose_ not to. Memory of Kyo's later confession that Yume had made him realize that very truth dumped figurative ice-water into Yuki's veins. Kyo's displays of temper were what lost him their fights; and his temper was conspicuously missing, just then.

The rat tried very hard to ignore the sensation of pure _danger_ at his back. His nerves insisted he was in his cursed form, being held in the jaws of a feline predator much larger than he was. A very, very _hungry_ feline predator. He fiercely willed the Rat's spirit to _go away;_ this was _Kyo,_ not some dangerous wild predator about to eat him! They weren't even really enemies any more. Rivals, yes; but neither truly wished to actually harm the other.

Kyo's voice stayed soft, lacking its usual force of anger, unnerving Yuki even more. "Cats aren't _stupid,_ you damn rat. We're independent, and can be contrary when somebody tries to force us. We know how to stalk-and how to _wait._ " The arm disappeared from Yuki's throat, and the rat's arm was released as Kyo gave him an almost gentle shove away. Yuki staggered a step, rubbing at his slightly sore shoulder, as he coughed softly to clear his airway. He quickly turned to face Kyo, who was standing with unnatural calm while staring back at him. He gave his throat a quick rub, then dropped his arms to his sides in readiness for whatever the cat-cursed young man would do next.

"Cats also don't hold grudges; we _avoid_ what we don't like, what hurts us." Red eyes were unblinking, and more than a touch feral. They matched Yume's gaze perfectly, as the black cat settled herself once more at his feet. "Akito wanted us fighting; I obliged him...but only because it suited me. It just-took me a while to consciously realize everything I was doing." Red eyes flicked towards Yume, then back to the rat.

Yuki glared at his oddly-behaving cousin. He did not like how Kyo was acting, so different from his usual brash, hot-tempered self. "Just what was going on between you and Akito? I thought Yume and Count D had taken care of Akito's threat to you."

Kyo gave a humorless chuckle, twisting his face into an almost-sneer, but Yuki still noticed the unexpected sadness in the cat's eyes. "You know about the bet he made with me. All Yume could guarantee was that the bastard would leave me alone once he locked the door on me. They couldn't keep Akito from hurting others, to get me to obey him." Kyo snorted, face twisting with bitterness. "Not that I really care that much about being a part of this screwed up family, and attending that stupid banquet; but being locked up just doesn't appeal to me, you know? Anyway, he forgot to specify _how_ I had to beat you."

Yuki frowned, events from the last several years flickering through his thoughts even as he wondered that the idiot cat had actually been planning on following through with that bet-win or lose. Thinking about it, he realized Kyo was right-if the cat hadn't gone quietly into his cage on Akito's winning, the Clan Head _would_ have hurt someone else; like Kazuma...or more likely, Tohru. The rat shivered to think of Tohru stripped of every last one of her memories of the Sohmas, turned out to live with the family of that ungrateful aunt of hers. He shook his thoughts away from that distressing possibility.

"So...all the fights...those were-what? _Distractions?_ To lull Akito into thinking he had you where he wanted you, that he was going to win...?" He stared at his cousin, feeling utterly confounded. "You've been acting the idiot...on _purpose...?"_

Kyo sighed, looking off to the side, pride keeping his head up. Yume cocked her head at Yuki, almost seeming to smirk. She'd told the rat that Kyo loved his family...was that why he'd been going to allow himself to be locked up, if he lost? So Akito wouldn't take it out on the rest of them, as well as Tohru...? Had his fiery-tempered cousin really been _willing_ to be locked up for the rest of his life, just so the rest of them would have someone to look at to reassure them that they could be worse off?

"Yeah." Kyo looked back at Yuki, with a quick glance towards Tohru, who had her hands in front of her mouth as she watched them; worry written all over her face in clear, bold kanji. "I'd say I'm sorry for messing with your head, but I don't want to lie." A small half-smile twitched at his lips, rarely-seen mischief flaring in those crimson eyes before he relented. "Hey; I _thought_ I really _was_ trying to beat you in those fights, until Yume came along. The school-work was my back-up plan." The smile quickly burst into a full-blown smirk. "Heh. I've managed to pull one over on _Shigure,_ the master manipulator, himself! Did you see his face, when they called _my_ name? I thought he was gonna fall right over!" The smile went feral again, briefly.

Yuki grit his teeth to quell the anger surging up to battle with equal parts chagrin and amusement, tearing his eyes from Kyo to gaze straight at Yume. "This is what you were trying to tell me, wasn't it. And now you have that answer you wanted. Don't you, Yume-san."

Kyo sucked in a startled breath as he glanced at Yuki, then Yume. His eyes then nervously went to Tohru, who was blinking in confusion at Yuki addressing Kyo's 'pet' as if she were human.

Then Tohru was staring in outright wonder at the black-haired young woman suddenly standing where the long-haired black cat had been. Kyo, who always saw Yume as human, almost didn't notice the change in the others' perceptions. He kept silent, wondering what Yume wanted to say to them; knowing very well that anything he said about it wouldn't change a thing.

Kyo knew cats all too well, even if girls were still something of a mystery. Though come to think of it, there were a lot of major similarities...namely, doing what _they_ wanted to do, not what you wanted them to do...! Yume knew how much this would mean to Tohru, knowing her 'secret'; and would probably insist that all the special meals and treats Tohru cooked for her; and the daily-cleaned beds she made up wherever Yume seemed to want to lay; the immaculately clean litter box Tohru all but scrubbed down daily; and the way the girl always managed to drop what she was doing-sometimes literally-just to pay attention to the long-haired black cat when it came into a room with her...oh, no, all that had nothing to do with revealing herself to Tohru. Nope, absolutely nothing at all.

"Oh!" Tohru's hands rose to her mouth in astonishment while Kyo stared sardonically at his 'pet'. "Y-Yume-chan...?" Wide chocolate eyes fixed on amused obsidian as the girl-cat smiled benevolently at her, nodding slightly. "OH!" Tohru bowed nervously, her face quickly changing from shock to delight as she started babbling about how nice it was to meet Yume-chan; and she was _so_ glad she finally got to see Yume-chan's human form; and was it a curse, was she somehow part of the Zodiac-

Kyo dropped his head and sighed deeply in resignation, in unintended stereo effect with Yuki. The boys looked at each other, then back at the two girls as an amused Yume enfolded Tohru in a warm embrace, smiling an enigmatic smile at the boys that reminded Yuki a bit too much of Count D.

Akito never did lay eyes on Kyo again, or Yume. One year after Kyo's unexpected 'defeat' of Yuki, while both boys and Tohru were in college, the Clan Head contracted his final case of pneumonia. By this time, Kyo had finally proposed to Tohru, who squealed and accepted immediately, unable to restrain herself from leaping right into the startled cat's arms.

They were both more than startled when Kyo didn't transform. His curse had been broken, even as Kureno and Momiji had broken their own before. As the proposal had come at Shigure's house, a rather teary-eyed but beaming dog was able to watch the joyous dancing and antics that followed, commenting that it was a good thing they could hold the wedding within a month. This earned him a remarkably light bop on the head from the rat at his side, who was also rather teary-eyed even while smiling.

Yuki was happy for Tohru, and Kyo; he'd been going steady with a certain girl for eight months, and discovered what he felt for Tohru was a pale shadow of what he now felt for his own girlfriend. He was still trying to work up the courage to tell her about his curse...but he was very, very close to doing it, Akito's orders be damned.

Akito died in the middle of the night following Kyo and Tohru's wedding, with his ever-faithful Kureno, Hatori and Shigure at his side. All of the Zodiac-cursed _felt_ his passing...

...and the unexpected passing on of all of their animal spirits, as the Cat of the Zodiac finally expressed his love for an outsider-and was completely and unequivocally accepted and loved in return.

-.-.-.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _**AN:** All done! Hope you liked it. And no, I'm _ not _going to name the girl Yuki's dating; it's not important for this story...and I'm sure everyone reading this has their own favorite choice who's name you can now slide into the blank, whether it's Machi, Hanajima, Arisa, Motoko, a brand-new girl, etc._


End file.
